SELDWYLA  FOLKS 
THREE  SINGULAR  TALES 


SELDWYLA    FOLKS 

THREE  SINGULAR  TALES 


BY 
THE   SWISS  POET 

GOTTFRIED   KELLER 


TRANSLATIONS   BY 

WOLF  VON  SCHIERBRAND,   Ph.D. 


NEW  YORK 

BRENTANO'S 

PUBLISHERS 


COPYRIGHT,    1919 

BRENTANO'S 


All  rights  reserved 


Ql 


K 


r'- 


PREFACE 

GOTTFRIED  KELLER  may  fitly  be  called  the 
greatest  narrative  writer  that  Switzerland  has 
ever  produced.  Born  July  19,  1819,  near  Zurich, 
he  was  reared  in  direst  poverty.  By  dint  of  the 
hardest  labor  and  by  practicing  the  utmost  frugality, 
his  father  was  barely  able  to  provide  bread  for  wife 
and  children.  But  in  the  midst  of  this  penury  the 
genius  of  his  young  son  Gottfried  expanded.  As  a 
mere  child  he  gave  already  unmistakable  evidence 
of  being  a  dreamer,  a  thinker,  a  philosopher,  a  "fabu- 
list," an  artist.  Just  able  to  write,  the  little  boy 
forever  scribbled  poems  and  fanciful  tales,  made 
rapid  sketches  with  pencil  and  pen,  portraits,  cari- 
catures, landscapes.  At  the  village  school  he  imbibed 
knowledge  like  a  sponge.  Soon  the  gnarled  old  school- 
master, half  peasant,  half  teacher,  looked  aghast  at 
his  little  scholar:  he  had  no  more  to  teach  him. 
Generous  friends  sent  the  youth  to  Munich,  there  to 
study  art.  For  at  that  time  his  desire  was  to  become 
a  great  painter.  Desperately  and  with  fiery  energy 
the  young  fellow  devoted  himself  to  study,  and  his 
attainments  were  considerable.  They  would  fully 
have  sufficed  for  a  career  as  a  mediocre  portrait  painter. 


vi  PREFACE 

But  his  very  excess  of  zeal  led  to  surfeit,  to  exhaustion, 
to  a  period  of  lethargy.  "All  work  and  no  play 
makes  Jack  a  dull  boy."  This  fit  of  listlessness  lasted 
even  for  some  time  after  Gottfried^s  return  home. 
All  effort  with  him  slackened. 

Patrons  finally  intervened.  With  their  aid  he 
went  to  Heidelberg,  and  for  two  full  years,  1848- 1850, 
he  there  pursued  literary  and  historical  research. 
The  historian,  Hettner,  took  great  interest  in  the 
young  Swiss.  Next  he  went  to  Berlin,  and  during 
the  ensuing  five  years  he  wrote  and  studied  in  a  desul- 
tory manner  there.  Great  attention  was  paid  him 
by  Goethe's  intimate  friend,  Varnhagen  von  Ense, 
and  the  latter's  wife,  the  "seeress,"  Rahel,  who  drew 
the  shy  young  man  into  their  wide  literary  circle, 
comprising  for  two  decades  the  beaux  esprits  of  the 
capital.  But  his  bluntness  of  speech,  his  sturdy 
Swiss  republicanism,  often  gave  offense. 

For  that  was  one  of  the  remarkable  points  about 
Gottfried  Keller:  despite  his  long  residence  on  Ger- 
man soil  and  the  flattering  reception  accorded  him 
by  the  intellectual  Slite  there,  he  remained  a  thorough 
democrat,  an  uncompromising  friend  of  the  plain 
people,  a  fearless  champion  of  Swiss  free  government, 
a  hater  of  tyranny  in  any  form,  a  despiser  of  monarchs 
and  their  favors.  Among  his  poems,  later  collected 
into  a  bulky  tome,  there  are  many  that  breathe  defiance 
to  royalty  by  "divine  grace." 

Much   of   this   sentiment   of   anti-monarchism   has 


PREFACE  vii 

crept  into  his  first  great  work,  the  "Gruener  Hein- 
rich."  This,  a  sort  of  autobiography  in  guise  of  a 
big  novel,  alive  with  adventure  as  well  as  thoughts 
on  men  and  things,  he  first  published  from  1854  to  1855, 
but  it  was  afterward  recast  in  characteristic  fashion, 
1879-1881.  In  a  manner  of  speaking,  his  "Gruener 
Heinrich"  is  also  a  confession  of  faith.  There  are 
many  didactic  passages  in  it;  the  whole  book,  in  fact, 
breathes  the  convictions  of  its  author.  This  is  still 
more  the  case  with  the  last  great  work  from  Keller's 
pen,  "Martin  Salander,''  where  the  frequent  poHtical 
and  social  precepts  interwoven  into  the  text  of  the 
story  form,  from  the  purely  artistic  viewpoint,  a 
serious  blemish. 

*  It  is  generally  conceded  that  Keller's  masterpiece 
is  "Seldwyla  Folks"  ("Die  Leute  von  Seldwyla"), 
which  appeared  in  two  sections,  the  first  of  these 
in  1856,  the  second  in  1874.  From  this  group  of 
weird,  fantastic  tales  the  three  forming  the  contents 
of  this  book  are  taken.  About  the  origin  of  the 
title  Keller  himself  has  written  in  his  inimitably 
oracular  and  whimsical  style.  The  name  and  the 
town  itself  are  wholly  fictitious.  They  represent  a 
sort  of  collective  traits  of  a  number  of  ancient,  un- 
progressive  Swiss  towns,  left  head  over  heels  in 
medievahsm,  in  outworn  customs,  with  some  peculiar 
features  exclusively  their  own.  Each  tale  is  a  jewel 
cut  and  polished,  a  distinctive  literary  entity,  some- 
thing that  may  not  be  duplicated  elsewhere  in  the 


viii  PREFACE 

whole  realm  of  letters,  with  a  full  flavor  of  its  own. 
Where,  for  instance,  in  the  literature  of  any  tongue, 
is  to  be  found  a  humorous-sarcastic  story  of  the  raci- 
ness  of  "The  Three  Decent  Combmakers"? 

From  1 86 1  to  1878  Keller  filled,  to  the  eminent 
satisfaction  of  his  countrymen,  the  important  and 
remunerative  ofhce  of  "Staatsschreiber,"  one  that 
combined  the  duties  of  secretary  of  state  with  those 
of  custodian  of  documents  and  librarian  for  his  native 
canton,  which  was  offered  him  in  direct  recognition 
of  his  literary  merits.  As  such  he  utilized  for  a  cycle 
of  semi-historical  tales  some  of  the  most  curious 
records  in  his  keeping,  which  are  embalmed  in  his' 
"Zurich  Stories'^  (Zuericher  Novellen),  1877.  I^ 
the  year  after  that  he  retired  from  office,  and  in  1882 
appeared  "The  Epigram"  (Das  Sinngedicht) ,  in 
1883  his  "Seven  Legends,"  based  on  some  of  the 
Lives  of  the  Saints,  singularly  humanized  and  modern- 
ized, and  in  1886  finally  "Martin  Salander,"  an  in- 
tensely patriotic  and  peculiarly  Helvetian  novel. 
He  was  also  a  master  of  the  short  story,  a  sadly  ii^g- 
lected  field  in  Teutonic  literature. 

Meanwhile,  wherever  German  was  understood  or 
spoken  the  writings  of  Gottfried  Keller  had  found  in- 
tense appreciation,  at  first  slowly,  then  more  rapidly,  and 
eminent  German  critics  and  authors,  such  as  Theodore 
Storm,  Berthold  Auerbach,  F.  Th.  Vischer  and  others, 
had  pronounced  themselves  ardent  admirers  of  his. 
But  in  1890  he  died,  after  a  lingering  illness. 


PREFACE  ix 

The  question  may  well  be  asked  how  it  is  that  the 
literary  lifework  of  such  a  man  as  Gottfried  Keller 
has  for  so  many  years  been  denied  the  most  sincere 
form  of  homage,  that  of  translation,  by  the  whole 
non- German-speaking  world.  There  may  be  addi- 
tional reasons  for  this  seeming  neglect,  but  I  believe 
the  chief  one  lies  in  the  fact  of  the  unusual  difficulty 
of  the  task.  To  cast  the  thoughts  and  conceits  of 
an  individualistic  writer  into  another  vehicle  of  speech 
is  in  itself  no  easy  matter.  But  in  the  case  of  Gott- 
fried Keller  it  is  especially  so.  For  the  man,  as  I 
took  pains  to  point  out,  was  a  Swiss,  not  by  any  man- 
ner of  means  a  German.  And  not  only  is  the  subject 
matter  of  his  lyrical  and  epical  output  strongly  tinged 
with  Helvetism,  but  his  very  language  as  well.  The 
Swiss- German  vernacular  is  more  than  a  mere  dialect; 
it  is  almost  a  tongue  of  its  own.  On  all  but  on  the 
few  solemn  and  formal  occasions  of  life  the  Swiss 
expresses  himself  in  what  he  terms  "Schwyzer- 
Dutsch,"  which  is  indeed  scarcely  understood  by 
persons  habituated  to  German  proper,  and  even  when 
the  Swiss  author  perforce  drops  into  the  latter  he 
uses  so  many  peculiarly  Helvetian  terms  and  modes 
of  speech,  so  many  archaic  saws,  his  whole  method 
of  handling  the  language  is  so  different  that  to  reshape 
what  he  says  into  another  tongue  without  doing 
violence  to  the  spirit,  the  soul,  the  flavor  and  thus 
marring  the  translation  irretrievably  and  doing  gross 
injustice  to  the  original  becomes  doubly  hard. 


X  PREFACE 

I  can  only  say  that  I  have  done  in  this  respect  what 
was  humanly  possible.  What  the  final  result  has 
turned  out  to  be  is  for  the  court  of  last  resort,  for  the 
final  arbiter,  the  reader,  to  say. 

W.  V.  s. 


PAGE 
V 


CONTENTS 

PREFACE 

THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS      ....  i 

DIETEGEN 8i 

ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VH^LAGE      .  193 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS 


THE    THREE    DECENT 
COMBMAKERS 

THE  people  of  Seldwyla  have  furnished  proof  that 
a  whole  townful  of  the  unjust  or  frivolous  may, 
after  all,  continue  for  ages  to  exist  despite  changes  of 
time  and  traffic;  the  three  combmakers,  though,  dem- 
onstrate as  clearly  that  not  even  three  decent  himian 
beings  may  manage  to  live  for  a  long  stretch  under  one 
roof  without  getting  their  backs  up.  And  with  decent, 
with  just,  is  not  by  any  means  meant  heavenly  justice, 
nor  even  the  natural  justice  of  the  human  conscience, 
but  rather  that  vacuous  justice  which  from  the  Lord^s 
Prayer  has  struck  the  plea:  And  forgive  us  our  debts, 
as  we  also  forgive  our  debtors!  And  this  simply  because 
they  never  contract  any  debts  whatever  and  cannot 
stand  the  idea  of  debts.  Indeed,  also  because  they 
live  to  no  one's  harm,  but  also  to  no  one's  pleasure;  he- 
cause,  true  enough,  they  work  and  earn  money,  but  will 
not  spend  a  stuyver,  and  find  in  their  laboring  task 
some  small  profit  but  never  any  joy.  Such  soberly 
decent  chaps  do  not  smash  window  panes  for  the 
wicked  fun  of  it,  but  neither  do  they  ever  light  any 
lanterns  of  their  own,  and  no  enlightenment  proceeds 


2  seli!)Wyla  folks 

from  them.  They  toil  at  all  sorts  of  things,  and  one 
thing,  to  their  minds,  is  as  good  as  another,  so  long 
as  no  risk  or  danger  be  involved.  But  they  prefer  to 
settle  in  such  places  where  there  are  many  unjust  in 
their  sense.  For  if  left  to  themselves,  without  any 
mingling  with  the  said  unjust,  they  would  soon  grind 
each  other  sorely,  as  do  millstones  which  lack  corn  be- 
tween. And  if  at  any  time  some  piece  of  ill-luck  be- 
falls them,  they  are  greatly  amazed  and  wail  and 
whine  as  though  their  last  hour  had  come,  inasmuch 
as  they,  so  they  say,  have  never  done  harm  to  anyone. 
For  they  look  upon  this  world  of  ours  as  a  huge  and 
well-organized  police  department  in  which  nobody 
need  fear  any  fine  or  punishment  so  long  as  he  unfail- 
ingly sweeps  his  sidewalk,  does  not  leave  flowerpots 
standing  loosely  on  his  window  sill  and  does  not  pour 
any  water  into  the  street. 

Now  in  Seldwyla  there  was  a  combmaking  establish- 
ment the  owner  of  which  habitually  changed  every  fifth 
or  sixth  year,  and  this  although  it  did  fair  business 
when  taken  proper  care  of.  For  the  small  traders  and 
stand-keepers  who  attended  the  fairs  in  the  neighbor- 
hood, obtained  there  their  horn  wares.  Beside  the 
horn  rasps  and  files,  the  implements  of  various  kinds, 
the  most  marvelous  ornaments  and  back-combs  of 
every  description  for  the  use  of  the  village  belles  and 
servant  maids  were  made  there  out  of  handsome  trans- 
parent ox  horns,  and  the  rare  skill  of  the  workmen 
(for,  of  course,  the  master  never  actually  toiled  him- 


THE   THREE   DECENT   COMBMAKERS     3 

self)  consisted  in  branding  and  searing  the  close  coun- 
terfeit of  the  most  artistically  designed  clouds  of  red- 
dish brown  tortoise  shell,  each  according  to  his  con- 
ceit and  fancy,  so  that,  when  admiring  these  combi. 
as  the  light  played  on  their  fantastic  cumulations, 
looked  almost  as  though  the  most  magnificent  sun 
and  sundowns  were  concealed  within  the  polished  1 
surface,  rubicund  gatherings  of  cloudlets,   thur 
storms  and  tornadoes,  as  well  as  still  other  varicol 
manifestations  of  the  forces  of  Nature. 

In  the  summertime,  when  these  proud  artisans 
to  wander  over  the  surface  of  the  land  and  when 
were  scarce,  they  were  treated  with  courtesy  by 
masters,  and  received  good  board  and  wages.     1 
during  the  winter,  at  a  time  when  they  were  lookii 
for  shelter  and  were  plentiful,  they  had  to  be  humble, 
had  to  turn  out  combs  till  their  very  pates  smoked 
with  the  effort,  and  all  for  slender  pay.     During  that 
inauspicious  season  the  mistress  of  the  house  one  day 
after  another  would  put  a  big  dish  of  sourkrout  on 
the  table,  and  the  master  himself  would  then  say: 
"  These  are  fish!  "  And  if  at  such  a  time  any  fellow  was 
rash  enough  to  remark:  "With  your  permission,  this 
is  sourkrout!"  he  was  instantly  handed  his  walking 
papers  and  had  to  issue  forth  into  the  dreary  winter 
landscape.    However,  as  soon  as  the  meadows  once 
more  turned  green  and  the  roads  became  passable, 
they  all  said:  "  All  the  same,  it's  sourkrout! "  and  made 
U;D  their  bundle.    For  even  in  case  the  mistress  in- 


4  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

stantly  threw  a  boiled  ham  on  top  of  the  smoking 

sourkrout,  and  the  master  would  murmur:  "  Goodness, 

I  thought  all  along  it  was  fish!    But  this  time,  surely, 

•t  is  a  ham! "  nevertheless  the  workmen  were  not  to  be 

opitiated  any  longer.    They  longed  for  freedom  and 

open,  as  during  the  long  winter  all  three  of  them 

had  to  sleep  in  one  bed  and  had  grown  thoroughly 

of  each  other  because  of  the  continual  kicking 

bs  and  because  of  frozen  and  numbed  bare  sides. 

it  it  so  happened  that  once  a  decent  and  gentle 

came  that  way,  from  out  of  the  Saxon  lands,  and 

good  fellow  complied  with  everything,  worked  as 

d  as  any  ant  and  was  absolutely  not  to  be  frozen 

:,  in  such  fashion  that  finally  he  became  so  to  speak 

part  of  the  furnishings  of  the  house  and  saw  the  owners 

changing  several  times,  those  years  being  somewhat 

more  given  to  changes  than  of  yore.    Jobst  (such  was 

the  creature's  name)  stretched  himself  in  the  bed  as 

stiff  as  a  ramrod  and  maintained  his  particular  place 

next  the  wall,  both  winter  and  summer.    He  likewise 

willingly  accepted  the  sourkrout  for  fish,  and  in  the 

spring  received  with  humble  thanks  a  mouthful  of 

the  ham.    His  lesser  wages  he  put  aside  as  he  did  his 

larger  ones.    For  he  never  spent  anything;    rather 

he  saved  every  penny.    He  did  not  hve  like  the  other 

workmen:   he  never  touched  a  drop  of  wine,  did  not 

associate  with  any  of  his  own  countrymen  nor  with 

other  young  fellows,  but  stood  evenings  under  tlie 

house  door  and  joked  with  the  old  women,  lifted  t!ie 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS   5 

heavy  water  pails  upon  their  padded  heads,  at  least 
when  he  chanced  to  be  in  good  humor,  and  went  to 
bed  with  the  chickens,  except  at  such  times  as  he  could 
do  extra  work  against  extra  pay.  Sundays  he  also 
toiled  until  late  into  the  afternoon,  no  matter  if  the 
weather  was  fine.  But  do  not  assume  that  he  did 
all  this  with  pleasure  and  alacrity,  as  did  John  the 
merry  Chandler  in  the  well-known  song.  On  the 
contrary,  he  was  always  cast-down  and  of  ill-humor 
because  of  these  voluntary  abstentions  from  the 
amenities  of  life,  and  he  was  forever  complaining  about 
his  hard  lot.  Come  Sunday  afternoon,  however, 
Jobst  went  in  all  the  disarray  and  filth  of  workaday, 
and  with  his  clattering  sabots  across  the  lane  and 
fetched  from  the  laundress  his  clean  shirt  and  his 
neatly  ironed  "dicky,"  his  high  linen  collar  or  his 
better  handkerchief,  and  proceeded  to  carry  these 
things  in  his  hands  to  his  room,  stepping  the  while 
with  that  rooster-like  majesty  which  used  to  distin- 
guish the  prideful  artisan  of  former  days.  For  it 
belonged  to  their  privileges,  when  walking  attired  in 
leather  apron  and  heavy  slippers,  to  observe  a  very 
peculiar  stride,  affected  and  as  though  they  were 
floating  in  upper  spheres.  And  of  them  all  the  highly 
instructed  bookbinders,  the  jolly  shoemakers  and 
cobblers,  and  the  rarer  and  queer-mannered  comb- 
makers  excelled  in  these  mannerisms.  But  arrived 
in  his  little  chamber  Jobst  once  more  took  thought 
to  himself,  ruminating  and  seriously  reflecting  as  to 


6  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

whether  it  was  really  worth  while  to  don  the  clean 
shirt  and  the  snowy  "dicky."  For  with  all  his  gentle- 
ness and  moral  decency  he  was,  after  all,  somewhat 
of  a  swinish  fellow,  and  thus  doubts  arose  in  his  penu- 
rious little  soul  as  to  the  advisability  of  the  whole 
proceeding,  and  as  to  whether  the  soiled  linen  would 
not  do  just  as  well  for  another  week  or  so,  in  which 
latter  case  he  would  simply  remain  at  home  and  work 
a  little  more.  Then  he  would  sit  down  with  a  sigh 
and  begin  anew,  teeth  clenched  and  mien  fierce, 
cutting  into  the  horn,  or  else  he  would  transmute  the 
horn  into  pseudo-tortoise  shell,  in  doing  which,  how- 
ever, he  never  forgot  his  innate  sobriety  and  want  of 
imagination,  so  that  he  always  put  but  the  same 
odious  three  splotches  into  the  smooth  surface.  For 
with  him  it  was  always  thus  that  he  would  not  use  even 
the  sHghtest  trouble  if  he  was  not  specially  bidden 
to  do  so. 

On  the  other  hand,  if  his  resolution  ripened  into 
the  actual  taking  of  a  walk,  he  spent  first  one  or  two 
hours  painfully  adorning  himself,  next  he  took  his  dap- 
per Httle  cane  and  stalked  stiffly  towards  the  gate  of  the 
town,  and  there  he  would  stand  around  humbly  and 
tediously  and  would  carry  on  stupid  gossip  with  others 
of  the  same  ilk,  some  of  those  who  did  not  know  any 
more  than  himself  how  to  kill  time  pleasantly,  perhaps 
ancient  and  decrepit  Seldwylians  who  had  neither 
money  nor  gumption  to  find  their  way  into  the  gay 
tavern.     With   such  godforsaken   old   fossils  he   was 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS       7 

in  the  habit  of  placing  himself  in  front  of  a  house 
in  process  of  construction,  or  near  a  field  in  seed, 
before  an  apple  tree  injured  in  the  last  storm,  or  per- 
haps next  to  a  new  yarn  factory,  and  then  he  would 
discuss  with  an  infinitude  of  detail  these  things,  the  need 
of  them,  their  cost,  about  the  hopes  entertained  as  to 
the  next  crop,  and  about  the  actual  condition  of  the 
fields,  of  all  of  which  he  would  know  no  more  than  the 
man  in  the  moon.  In  fact,  he  did  not  care  whether 
he  did  or  not;  the  main  thing  with  him  was  that 
time  thus  sHpped  away  in  what  to  him  appeared  the 
cheapest  and  the  pleasantest  manner.  And  thus  it 
came  about  that  these,  the  old  and  decrepit  Seld- 
wylians,  only  spoke  of  him  as  the  "well-mannered 
and  sensible  Saxon,"  for  they  themselves  understood 
not  a  whit  more  than  he  himself.  When  the  people 
of  Seldwyla  founded  a  large  brewery  on  shares,  hoping 
therefrom  for  huge  business  in  their  town,  and  when 
the  extensive  foundation  walls  emerged  from  the 
ground,  Jobst  used  to  make  it  his  task  of  boring  into 
the  soil  thereabouts  with  his  cane,  talking  like  an 
expert  and  showing  the  keenest  interest  in  the  prog- 
ress of  the  work,  for  all  the  world  as  if  he  were  the 
most  assiduous  toper  himself  and  as  if  the  success  or 
non-success  of  the  enterprise  were  a  matter  of  life 
and  death  with  him.  "No  indeed,"  he  would  then 
exclaim  in  his  lisping  voice,  "  this  is  a  shplendid  under- 
takking.  Only,  the  devil  of  it  is  it  costs  so  mooch 
monnee!    So  mooch  monnee!   It's  a  pity!    And  here, 


8  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

this  here  vault  ought  really  to  be  a  leetle,  yoost  a 
lee  tie  bit  deeper,  and  this  wall  a  leetle  bit  thicker." 
And  the  other  idiots  sided  with  him  and  said  he 
knew  all  about  it. 

However,  for  all  his  enthusiasm  he  never  failed 
to  show  up  in  time  for  his  Sunday  supper.  For  that 
was  indeed  the  sole  chagrin  he  inflicted  on  the  mis- 
tress at  home  that  he  never  missed  a  meal,  Sunday 
or  any  other  day.  The  other  workmen  would  go  to 
the  tavern  with  their  comrades  and  friends,  dance, 
play  cards  and  amuse  themselves.  But  not  so  Jobst. 
On  his  account  alone  the  master^s  wife  was  forced  to 
remain  at  home  Sundays,  or  else  to  provide  his  lone- 
some supper.  And  then,  after  chewing  as  long  as  he 
could  his  portion  of  bread  and  sausage  or  cold  meat, 
he  would  spend  another  considerable  while  pawing 
over  his  slender  possessions,  fingering  them  as  though 
they  were  the  treasures  of  Aladdin,  with  bated  breath, 
and  then  he  would  retire  to  his  strictly  virtuous  couch. 
That  according  to  his  notions  had  been  an  enjoyable, 
a  roystering  Sunday. 

But  with  all  his  humble,  decent  and  inconspicuous 
ways,  Jobst  was  not  lacking  in  a  species  of  inner, 
hidden  irony,  as  though  in  his  own  peculiar  way  he 
were  making  fun  of  the  world  with  its  vanity  and 
its  foolishness.  Indeed  he  seemed  even  to  have 
strong  doubts  as  to  the  grandeur  and  worth  of  things 
in  general,  and  to  be  conscious  of  harboring  within 
his  own  soul  plans  far  more  momentous  and  stirring. 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS   9 

On  Sundays,  notably  when  delivering  his  expert  opin- 
ions on  creation  as  a  whole,  he  often  showed  a  face 
alive  with  superior,  with  almost  owlish  wisdom. 
It  was  plainly  to  be  seen  in  his  pinched  features  how 
he  carried  within  his  inmost  ken  plans  of  immense 
importance,  plans  compared  with  which  the  doings 
of  the  others,  after  all,  were  but  as  child's  play.  The 
great,  the  overwhelmingly  great  plan  he  cherished 
day  and  night  and  which  had  been  all  these  years  his 
loadstar,  ever  since  he  had  first  appeared  in  Seldwyla, 
amounted  indeed  to  this:  To  save  his  wages  until 
there  would  be  a  sum  sufficient  to  present  himself 
some  fine  morning,  on  an  occasion  when  the  business 
would  be  once  more  for  sale,  with  the  money  in  his 
hand  and  purchase  it,  himself  at  last  becoming  owner 
and  master. 

This  darling  hope  lay  at  the  bottom  of  all  his  schem- 
ing and  contriving,  as  he  had  not  failed  to  notice  how 
an  industrious  and  abstemious  man  could  not  fail  to 
flourish  in  Seldwyla.  He,  to  be  sure,  was  such  a 
man,  one  who  went  his  own  quiet  way  and  who  was 
bound  to  profit  from  the  carelessness  of  the  people 
thereabouts  without  falling  into  the  same  errors  as 
these.  And  once  master  and  owner  of  the  establish- 
ment, it  would  not  be  difiicult  for  him  to  acquire 
citizenship  and  then,  he  calculated,  he  would  spend 
the  remainder  of  his  life  more  sensibly  and  economi- 
cally than  any  previous  citizen  of  Seldwyla  had 
ever  done,  not  bothering  the  slightest  about  anything 


lo  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

which  was  not  likely  to  increase  his  wealth,  not  spend- 
ing a  penny,  but  accumulating  more  and  more  money, 
watching  all  the  time  his  chances  among  the  spend- 
thrifts of  the  town.  This  plan  was  indeed  as  simple 
as  it  was  sensible  and  well-considered,  especially  as  he 
had  begun  to  realize  it,  in  his  own  slow  but  sure  way, 
for  a  number  of  years  past.  For  he  had  already 
saved  up  quite  a  neat  little  sum;  this  he  had  hidden 
away  securely,  and  with  things  going  on  as  they  had 
hitherto,  it  was  but  a  question  of  time  when  his  scheme 
would  attain  full  fruition. 

But  there  was  one  point  about  his  plan  which  seemed 
to  brand  it  as  almost  inhuman.  That  was  the  fact 
that  Jobst  had  conceived  it  at  all,  that  is,  in  Seldwyla, 
for  nothing  in  his  heart  really  inclined  him  to  Seld- 
wyla, and  nothing  compelled  him  to  remain  there. 
He  cared  not  a  fig  really  either  for  the  town  or  its 
inhabitants,  either  for  the  political  condition  of  the 
country  or  its  manners  and  customs.  All  this  was 
as  indifferent  to  him  as  was  his  own  native  land,  and 
which  latter  he  did  not  even  care  to  ever  see  again. 
In  a  hundred  other  places  of  the  world  he  might  have 
equally  well  succeeded  with  his  diligence  and  his 
habits.  However,  he  had  discarded  all  sense  of 
free  choice,  and  with  his  grossly  grasping  senses  he 
had  seized  upon  the  first  tendril  of  hope  that  offered, 
in  order  to  keep  hold  and  suck  himself  through  it 
full  of  wealth  and  vigor.  The  saying,  it  is  true,  is: 
"  Where  I  fare  well,  there  is  my  home,"  and  this  may  be 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS      ii 

true  enough  in  the  case  of  those  who  can  really  show 
some  good  and  sufficient  reasons  why  they  love  their 
new  country  and  who  of  their  free  and  conscious  will 
went  out  into  the  wide  world  in  order  to  achieve 
success  and  to  return  as  men  of  weight,  or  of  those 
who  escape  unfortunate  conditions  at  home  and, 
obeying  a  strong  tendency,  join  the  modern  mi- 
gration across  the  seas;  or  of  those  who  somewhere 
have  found  better  and  truer  friends  than  at  home, 
or  who  discovered  conditions  abroad  that  suited  their 
ideals  and  secret  hopes  better  or  who  became  bound 
by  stronger  ties  abroad.  And  this  new  home  in  any 
case,  this  second  home  where  they  found  things  more 
to  their  taste  and  where  they  succeeded  well,  they 
necessarily  must  care  for,  so  long  as  there  they  are 
treated  humanely  and  fairly.  Jobst,  however,  scarcely 
knew  where  he  was;  the  institutions  and  customs  of 
the  Swiss  he  was  unable  to  understand,  and  he  merely 
said  sometimes:  "Why,  yes,  the  Swiss  are  strong  on 
pontics.  Maybe  that's  good,  so  long  as  one  hkes  it. 
But  I  don't,  and  where  I'm  from  nobody  ever  bothered 
about  political  things." 

The  customs  of  the  SeldwyHans  he  hated,  and  he 
felt  afraid  of  their  noisy  demonstrations  when  they 
organized  a  political  procession  or  had  mass  meetings. 
At  such  times  he  sat  in  the  rear  of  the  workshop  and 
feared  bloody  riots  and  murder  growing  out  of  it  all. 
But  nevertheless  it  remained  his  sole  object  and  his 
great  secret  to  stay  on  in  Seldwyla  until  the  end  of  his 


12  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

days.  Such  just  and  decent  persons  like  him  you 
will  find  scattered  all  over  the  earth,  and  where  they 
are  for  no  better  reason  than  that  it  just  so  happened 
they  got  hold  without  trouble  of  their  own  of  one  of 
these  sucking  tubes  guaranteeing  a  satisfactory  in- 
come. And  this  they  do  steadily,  giving  no  thought 
the  while  to  the  land  of  their  birth,  but  without  loving 
their  new  home,  without  a  glance  to  right  or  left, 
and  thus  resembling  not  so  much  a  freeman  as  one 
of  those  lower  organisms,  odd  animalculae  or  vege- 
table seeds,  which  by  the  whims  of  wind  or  water  are 
accidentally  carried  to  the  spot  where  they  flourish. 

Thus  Jobst  had  lived  year  after  year  in  Seldwyla, 
slowly  but  constantly  adding  to  his  secret  store  which 
he  had  buried  under  the  tiles  of  his  chamber  floor. 
No  tailor  could  boast  of  having  earned  anything 
through  him,  for  he  still  possessed  the  same  Sunday 
coat  in  which  he  had  arrived  in  town,  and  the  garment 
was  still  in  the  same  condition.  Neither  had  any 
shoemaker  done  any  work  for  him  in  Seldwyla,  for 
the  soles  of  his  boots  were  still  intact.  The  year, 
after  all,  has  but  fifty-two  Sundays,  and  only  the 
half  of  these  were  utilized  by  him  for  a  walk.  Nobody, 
in  fact,  had  been  the  better  for  his  stay  in  town;  as 
soon  as  he  received  his  wages  the  money  went  to  the 
hiding-place  mentioned,  and  even  when  he  went  off 
on  his  Sunday  excursions  he  never  put  a  coin  in  his 
pocket,  so  as  to  foil  any  temptation  for  spending. 
When   hucksters   or   old   women   came   to    the   shop 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS      13 

with  goods  or  fruit,  with  cherries,  plums  or  pears, 
it  was  amusing  to  watch  Jobst,  who  tenderly  felt  of 
the  quality  of  the  fruit,  entered  into  discussions  with 
the  vendors,  thus  leading  these  to  indulge  false  and 
extravagant  hopes,  only  to  be  disappointed.  He 
would,  however,  advise  his  comrades  as  to  how  to  make 
the  most  of  their  purchases,  how  to  bake  their  apples 
in  the  oven,  to  peel  them  or  to  stew  them,  without 
ever  asking  for  or  receiving  one  mouthful  himself. 
But  though  nobody  ever  saw  the  color  of  his  money, 
neither  did  they  ever  hear  him  swear,  show  any  anger, 
demand  anything  not  strictly  within  his  rights,  or 
give  vent  to  ill-humor.  He  was  the  very  essence  of 
pacifism.  He  carefully  avoided  quarrels  or  argument, 
and  he  did  not  even  make  a  wry  face  when  anyone, 
as  happened  frequently,  would  play  tricks  on  him. 
And  while  indeed  eaten  up  constantly  with  curiosity 
as  to  the  issue  of  every  kind  of  gossip,  disputes  or 
wrangling  he  had  come  to  know  about,  since  these 
furnished  him  with  one  of  his  chief  amusements,  and 
while  he  would  keep  a  strict  account  and  inquire  in 
a  mild  way  about  them  and  the  right  and  wrong  in 
each  case,  the  while  the  other  workmen  were  indulg- 
ing in  their  rude  brawls  or  tavern  orgies,  he  neverthe- 
less was  mighty  careful  never  to  interfere  or  to  take 
a  decided  part  for  or  against.  In  short,  he  was  a 
most  curious  medley  of  truly  heroic  wisdom  and 
persistence,  coupled  with  a  gentle  but  pronounced 
want  of  heart  and  feeling. 


14  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

At  one  time  he  had  been  for  many  weeks  the  sole 
workman  in  the  estabhshment,  and  he  had  flourished 
under  these  circumstances  like  a  green  bay  tree. 
Nights  especially  he  rejoiced  in  the  exclusive  tenancy 
of  the  big,  wide  bed.  He  made  full  use  of  his  oppor- 
tunities, and  went  through  incredible  contortions 
while  stretching  his  lank  limbs  in  the  bed.  He  in  a 
manner  trebled  his  person,  changing  his  posture 
ceaselessly,  and  indulged  in  the  hallucination  that, 
as  usual,  there  were  three  of  them  and  he  were  ur- 
gently requested  by  the  other  two  not  to  stand  on 
ceremony  and  to  take  things  easy.  The  third  one 
being  himself,  he  voluptuously  complied  with  the 
invitation,  wrapped  himself  completely  in  the  feather 
bed,  or  else  straddled  his  legs,  lay  across  the  full 
width  of  the  couch,  or  in  the  harmless  exuberance  of 
delight  would  even  turn  a  decent  somersault  or  two. 

But  alas!  the  day  came  when  he,  already  indulging 
in  some  such  innocent  capers,  after  having  retired 
early,  suddenly  saw  a  strange  workman  sedately 
enter  the  chamber,  being  led  thither  by  the  mistress 
of  the  house.  Jobst  was  just  lying  in  measureless 
comfort  with  his  head  at  the  foot  of  the  bed,  his  not 
quite  immaculate  feet  on  the  pillows,  when  this 
happened.  The  stranger  unfastened  his  heavy  knap- 
sack from  his  back,  stood  it  in  a  corner,  and  then, 
without  loss  of  time,  began  to  undress,  since  he  felt 
very  tired.  Jobst  quick  as  a  flash  assumed  the  proper 
position  in  bed  and  stretched  himself  along  his  accus- 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS      15 

tomed  spot  next  to  the  wall.  While  doing  this  the 
thought  rushed  through  his  head:  "Surely  he'll 
soon  clear  out  again,  since  it  is  summertime  and  fine 
weather  for  roaming  about." 

This  hope  on  further  consideration  took  firm  root, 
and  with  sundry  sighs  and  grunts  lulled  him  to  sleep. 
He  dreamt,  though,  of  a  speedy  resumption  of  the 
kicking  and  rowing  in  bed,  and  a  nightmare  woke 
him  in  the  middle  of  the  night,  an  evil  omen.  He  was 
amazed,  however,  when  dawn  came,  and  he  had 
felt  neither  pokes  in  the  ribs,  nor  had  been  feloniously 
deprived  of  his  share  of  the  covering.  Not  only  that; 
the  new  arrival,  although  a  Bavarian,  was  inordinately 
polite,  peaceable  and  well-behaved,  for  all  the  world 
like  a  counterpart  of  his  own  self.  This  unheard-of 
fact  cost  Jobst  his  calmness  of  mind.  He  could  not 
drive  the  misgivings  thus  engendered  from  his  head. 
And  while  the  two  were  dressing  in  the  dim  light 
of  early  morning,  he  scrutinized  his  new  fellow-worker 
closely.  It  seemed  a  singular  case  to  him.  He 
observed  that  this  new  man,  like  himself,  was  no 
longer  quite  young,  but  cleanly  and  decent  in  speech 
and  manners.  The  Bavarian  on  his  part  with  words 
well-set  and  sober  inquired  of  Jobst  about  the  circum- 
stances of  life  in  Seldwyla,  just  about  in  the  same  way 
in  which  he  himself  would  have  done  it.  As  soon  as 
this  became  apparent  to  him,  Jobst  grew  secretive 
and  kept  to  himself  the  simplest  and  most  harmless 
things,   opining  that,   of  course,   the  Bavarian  must 


f 


i6  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

have  some  occult  motive  in  coming  to  this  town. 
To  ascertain  this  secret  now  became  the  prime  object 
with  him.  That  there  was  a  deep  secret  he  never  had 
the  sHghtest  doubt.  Why  else  should  this  man,  just 
like  himself,  be  such  a  gentle,  smooth-spoken  and 
experienced  sort?  Only  by  the  theory  of  his  harboring 
a  deep-laid  scheme,  of  being  a  designing  person,  could 
he  explain  matters  to  himself.  And  thus  began 
a  kind  of  silent,  never-sleeping  warfare  between  these 
two.  Each  did  his  best  to  find  out  the  "secret" 
of  the  other;  but  it  was  all  done  with  the  greatest 
precaution,  in  words  of  double  meaning,  by  amiable 
subterfuges  and  in  peaceable  ways.  Neither  ever 
gave  a  clear  answer  to  any  question,  but  yet  after 
the  lapse  of  but  a  few  hours  each  of  the  pair  was 
firmly  convinced  that  the  other  was  in  all  essential 
respects  his  own  double.  And  when  in  the  course  of 
the  day  FridoliJi,the^- Bavarian,  several  times  visited 
the  chamber  and  busied  himself  with  something, 
Jobst  seized  upon  the  first  chance  to  go  there  likewise 
at  a  moment  when  the  other  was  fully  occupied  with 
his  work,  and  hurriedly  made  a  search  of  Fridolin's 
personal  property.  However,  he  discovered  nothing 
but  almost  precisely  the  same  articles  owned  by  him- 
self, down  to  a  small  wooden  needle  case,  except  that 
here  he  found  it  in  the  shape  of  a  fish,  while  his  own 
bore  a  sportive  resemblance  to  a  baby;  and,  further, 
in  lieu  of  a  somewhat  dilapidated  conversational 
grammar  for  popular  use  in  which  Jobst  sometimes 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS     17 

studied  French,  the  Bavarian  could  boast  of  a  neatly 
bound  copy  of  a  book  entitled  "The  cold  and  the 
hot  Vat,  an  indispensable  Handbook  for  Dyers."  And 
in  it  there  was  a  penciled  note  on  the  margin:  "Pledge 
for  three  Stuyvers  which  the  Nassau  man  borrowed 
of  me."  From  this  Jobst  judged  that  he  was  dealing 
with  somebody  who  knew  how  to  take  care  of  his  own, 
and  thinking  so  instinctively  cast  searching  glances 
along  the  floor.  Soon,  too,  he  noticed  a  tile  which 
seemed  to  have  recently  been  removed.  And  sure 
enough,  when  he  took  this  out,  he  found  the  man's 
treasure,  folded  and  wrapped  in  the  half  of  an  old 
handkerchief  tightly  wound  about  with  tough  twine, 
almost  as  heavy  as  his  own,  although  his  was  encased 
in  an  old  sock.  Trembling  with  excitement  he 
replaced  the  tile  in  its  yawning  hole,  trembling  at 
the  thought  of  such  admirable  foresight  and  wise 
economy  in  the  case  of  another,  a  rival,  a  competitor. 
He  flew  down  the  stairs,  and  in  the  workshop  he 
set  to  as  if  it  depended  on  his  exertions  to  provide 
the  entire  world  with  combs  for  generations  to  come. 
And  the  Bavarian  did  the  same,  as  if  Heaven  itself 
must  also  be  combed.  During  the  ensuing  week  each 
found  full  confirmation  of  his  first  suspicion.  For  if 
Jobst  was  industrious  and  frugal,  Fridolin  was  active 
and  abstemious,  and  with  the  same  regretful  sighs  at 
the  difficulty  of  these  virtues.  And  when  Jobst  was 
_^rene  and  sapient,  Fridolin  was  jocular  and  knowing. 
If  the  one  was  humble,  the  other  was  even  more  so. 


i8         •  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

When  Jobst  showed  himself  sly  or  ironical,  the  other 
was  sarcastic  and  almost  astute.  And  if  Jobst  made  a 
face  betraying  his  peaceful  disposition,  his  double  suc- 
ceeded in  putting  on  an  air  of  incomparable  asininity. 

The  whole  was  not  so  much  a  race  between  the  two 
as  it  was  the  simple  exercise  of  conscious  mastery  in 
all  these  arts.  Each  was  fully  permeated  with  the 
conviction  that  the  other  would  excel  him  if  not 
constantly  on  the  watch.  Neither  disdained  imi- 
tating the  other.  Each  of  them  was  forever  on  the 
lookout  to  perfect  himself,  taking  the  other  as  a  model 
in  any  traits  which  he  himself  might  yet  lack  or  be 
deficient  in.  And  with  all  that  they  looked  most  of 
the  time  as  though  each  was  perfectly  incapable  of 
seeing  through  the  other.  Thus  they  resembled  two 
doughty  heroes  who  behave  towards  each  other  with 
knightly  courtesy  and  even  assist  one  another  until 
the  moment  shall  arrive  when  they  begin  to  hack  away 
at  each  other.  . 

However,  after  the  lapse  of  this  week  a  third  came, 
a^^Suabian,  by  name  ^ietrich,  whereat  the  two  in 
silence  rejoiced,  as  at  a  jolly  foil  against  which  their 
own  greatness  of  soul  could  best  be  measured  and 
compared.  And  they  intended  to  place  the  poor 
little  Suabian  between  their  own  selves,  to  make  the 
contrast  between  him  and  their  own  patent  virtues 
all  the  more  striking,  about  as  in  the  case  of  two 
stately  Kons  with  a  tiny  monkey  between,  with  whom 
they  might  deign  to  play. 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    19 

But  who  can  describe  their  astonishment  when 
they  observed  that  the  Suabian  behaved  precisely 
in  the  same  manner  as  themselves,  and  when  the 
recognition  of  a  kindred  soul  took  place  by  the  identi- 
cal processes  as  had  been  the  case  before.  The  same 
adroit  system  of  standing  sentinel  over  each  other 
was  repeated.  But  with  this  signal  difference,  that 
now  it  was  a  triangular  game,  whereby  not  only 
they  themselves  altered  somewhat  their  own  attitude, 
but  the  third  man  his  also,  and  that  they  all  three 
finally  stood  towards  each  other  in  distinctly  different 
positions. 

This  became  first  apparent  on  the  night  of  his 
arrival  when  they  took  him  between  themselves  in 
bed.  The  Suabian  demonstrated  his  entire  parity. 
Like  a  match  he  lay  within  the  slim  space,  so  per- 
fectly poised  and  without  the  flicker  of  an  eyelid  that 
there  actually  remained  a  bit  of  room,  of  neutral 
territory,  on  either  side.  And  the  bed  cover  remained 
spread  over  the  trio  as  tight  and  smooth  as  the  wrap- 
ping paper  over  three  herrings.  He  was  evidently 
their  match.  The  situation  now  commenced  to  be 
more  serious,  more  complicated,  and  since  all  three 
now  faced  each  other  like  the  three  corners  of  a  tri- 
angle, and  since  no  friendly  or  confidential  relations 
were  under  these  circumstances  feasible  between  them, 
no  armistice  or  courtly  tournament,  they  got  into  a 
state  of  mind  where  they  with  malice  aforethought, 
each  in  his  own  way  and  with  his  own  weapons,  gently 


20  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

and  slily  began  to  try  ousting  each  other  out  of  bed 
and  house. 

When  the  master  of  the  house  saw  that  these  three 
queer  customers  would  put  up  with  anything,  if  only 
they  were  allowed  to  remain  in  his  service,  he  first 
lowered  their  wages,  and  next  gave  them  scanter  fare. 
But  this  only  led  to  an  aggravation  of  diligence  on 
their  part,  and  that  again  enabled  him  to  flood  the 
whole  surrounding  district  with  his  goods,  and  he 
got  orders  upon  orders,  so  that  he  made  a  pile  of  money 
out  of  their  cheap  labor  and  possessed  a  veritable  gold 
mine  in  them.  He  let  out  his  leather  belt  around  the 
loins  by  several  holes  and  began  to  play  quite  an  im- 
portant part  in  the  town,  while  all  this  time  his  foolish 
workmen  slaved  like  beasts  of  burden  in  their  dark 
and  ill-ventilated  shop  at  home,  striving,  each  of 
them,  to  force  the  other  two  out  of  the  race.  Die- 
trich, the  Suabian,  although  the  youngest  of  them, 
proved  of  the  same  calibre  as  the  other  two.  The 
only  difference  was  that  he  as  yet  had  scarcely  a.iy 
savings,  inasmuch  as  he  had  not  yet  traveled  around 
much,  having  been  a  prentice  until  recently.  This 
would  have  been  an  unfortunate  obstacle  for  him  in 
the  race,  for  Jobst  and  Fridolin  would  have  had  greatly 
the  start  of  him,  if  he  as  a  Suabian  had  not  been 
inventive  in  stratagem.  For  although  Dietrich's  heart, 
like  that  of  the  others,  was  wholly  bare  of  any  sinful 
or  earthly  passion,  always  excepting  the  one  of  per- 
sisting to  remain  in  Seldwyla  and  nowhere  else,  and 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS  21 

to  reap  all  the  advantages  of  that  plan,  he  nevertheless 
bethought  him  of  the  trick  of  falling  in  love  and  to  woo 
such  a  maiden  as  should  possess  about  such  a  dowry 
in  size  as  the  respective  treasures  which  the  Saxon 
or  the  Bavarian  had  hidden  under  their  tiles. 

It  was  one  of  the  better  pecuHarities  of  the  Seldwyla 
folk  that  they  were  averse  to  wed  unattractive  or 
unamiable  women  just  for  the  sake  of  a  somewhat 
larger  dowry.  There  was  no  very  great  temptation 
anyway,  for  wealthy  heiresses  there  were  none  in 
their  town,  either  pretty  or  homely  ones,  and  thus 
they  at  least  maintained  their  sturdy  and  manly 
independence  even  by  disdaining  the  smaller  mouth- 
fuls,  and  preferred  to  unite  themselves  rather  with 
goodlooking  and  merry  girls,  and  thus  lead  for  a  few 
years  with  them  at  any  rate  a  happy  Hfe.  Hence  it 
was  not  hard  for  the  Suabian,  spying  about  for  a 
suitable  partner,  to  find  his  way  into  the  good  graces 
of  a  virtuous  maiden.  She  dwelt  in  the  same  street, 
and  in  conversation  with  old  women  he  had  soon 
ascertained  that  she  possessed  as  her  own  undoubted 
property  a  mortgage  of  seven  hundred  florins.  This 
maiden  was  Zues  BuenzHn,  the  twenty-eight-year- 
old  daughter  of  a  washerwoman.  She  Hved  with 
her  mother,  but  could  freely  dispose  of  this  legacy 
from  her  deceased  father.  This  valuable  bit  of  paper 
she  kept  in  a  highly  varnished  trunk.  There,  too, 
she  had  the  accumulated  interest  money,  her  baptis- 
mal certificate,  her  testimonial  of  confirmation,  and 


22  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

a  painted  and  gilt  Easter  egg;  in  addition  to  all  this 
she  preserved  there  half  a  dozen  silver  spoons,  the 
Lord's  Prayer  printed  in  gold  letters  upon  transparent 
glass,  although  she  beheved  the  material  to  be  human 
skin,  a  cherry  stone  into  which  was  carved  the  Passion 
of  Christ,  and  a  small  box  of  ivory,  lined  with  red 
satin,  and  in  which  were  concealed  a  tiny  mirror  and 
a  silver  thimble;  there  was  also  in  it  another  cherry 
stone  in  which  you  could  hear  clattering  a  diminutive 
set  of  ninepins,  a  nutshell  in  which  a  madonna  became 
visible  behind  glass,  a  silver  heart,  in  a  hollow  of  which 
was  a  scent  bottle,  and  a  candy  box  fashioned  out  of 
dried  lemon  peel,  on  the  cover  of  which  was  painted 
a  strawberry,  and  in  which  there  might  be  discovered 
a  golden  pin  displayed  on  a  couch  of  cotton  wool 
representing  a  forget-me-not,  and  a  locket  showing 
on  the  inside  a  monument  woven  out  of  hair;  lastly, 
a  bundle  of  age-yellowed  papers  with  recipes,  secrets, 
and  so  forth;  also  a  small  flask  of  Cologne  water, 
another  holding  stomach  drops,  a  box  of  musk,  another 
with  marten  excrements,  and  a  small  basket  woven 
out  of  odoriferous  grasses,  another  of  beads  and  cloves, 
and  then  a  small  book  bound  in  sky-blue  silk  and 
entitled  "  Golden  Life  Rules  for  the  Maiden  as  Be- 
trothed, Wife  and  Mother";  and  a  dream  book,  a 
letter  writer,  five  or  six  love  letters,  and  a  lancet  for 
use  to  let  blood.  This  last  piece  came  from  a  barber 
and  assistant  surgeon  to  whom  she  had  once  been 
engaged,  and  since  she  was  a  naturally  skillful  and 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    23 

very  sensible  person  she  had  learned  from  her  fiance 
how  to  open  a  vein,  to  put  on  leeches,  and  similar 
things,  and  had  even  been  able  to  shave  him  herself. 
But  alas,  he  had  proved  an  unworthy  object  of  her 
affections,  with  whom  she  might  easily  have  risked 
her  temporal  and  heavenly  welfare,  and  thus  she  had 
with  saddened  but  wise  resolution  broken  the  engage- 
ment. GiftSMjere  returned  on  both  sides,  with  the 
exception  of  me  lancet.  This  she  kept  in  pawn  as 
pledge  for  one  florin  and  eight  and  forty  stuyvers, 
which  sum  she  on  one  occasion  had  lent  him  in  cash. 
The  unworthy  one  Claimed,  however,  that  she  had  no 
right  to  it  since  she  had  given  him  the  money  on  the 
occasion  of  a  ball,  in  order  to  defray  joint  expenses, 
and  he  added  that  she  had  eaten  twice  as  much  as 
himself.  Thus  it  happened  that  he  kept  the  florin 
and  forty-eight  stuyvers,  while  she  kept  the  surgical 
appliance,  with  which  Zues  operated  extensively 
among  her  female  acquaintance  and  earned  many 
a  penny.  But  every  time  she  used  the  instrument 
she  could  not  help  mentioning  the  low  habits  of  him 
who  had  once  stood  so  close  to  her  and  who  had  almost 
become  her  partner  for  life. 

All  these  things  were  locked  up  in  that  trunk,  and 
the  trunk  again  was  kept  in  a  large  walnut  wardrobe, 
the  key  to  which  Zues  had  constantly  in  her  pocket. 
As  to  her  person,  Zues  had  rather  sparse  reddish  hair 
as  well  as  clear  pale-blue  eyes;  these  now  and  then 
possessed  some  charm,  and  then  would  throw  glances 


24  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

both  wise  and  gentle.  She  owned  an  enormous  store 
of  clothes,  but  of  these  she  only  wore  the  oldest. 
However,  she  was  always  carefully  and  cleanly  dressed, 
and  just  as  neat  was  the  appearance  of  her  room. 
She  was  very  industrious  and  helped  her  mother  in 
her  laundry  work,  ironing  out  the  finer  and  more 
delicate  fabrics  and  washing  the  lace  caps  and  the 
jabots  of  the  wealthier  Seldwyla  ladies,  thus  earning 
quite  a  bit.  And  it  may  be  that  it  was  due  to  this 
sort  of  activity  that  Zues  always  exhibited  the  peculiar 
stern  and  dignified  bent  of  mind  which  women  show 
when  they  are  dealing  with  laundry  work,  especially 
with  the  work  over  the  tub.  For  Zues  never  unbent 
at  all  until  the  ironing  began.  Then,  it  might  be, 
a  species  of  sedate  cheerfulness  would  seize  upon  her, 
in  her  case,  however,  invariably  spiced  with  words 
of  wisdom.  This  sedate  spirit,  too,  was  recognizable 
in  the  chief  decorative  piece  on  the  premises, 
namely,  a  garland  of  soap  cakes,  square,  accurately 
gauged  cakes,  which  encircled  the  large  living  room 
on  shelves.  The  soap  was  thus  exposed  to  the  warm 
air  currents  in  order  to  harden  and  become  fitter  for 
use.  And  it  was  Zues  herself  who  always  cut  out  the 
cakes  by  means  of  a  brass  wire.  The  wire  had  fas- 
tened to  it  at  either  end  two  small  wooden  knobs  so 
one  could  seize  them  there  for  a  more  commodious 
cutting  of  the  soft  soap.  But  a  fine  pair  of  com- 
passes used  in  dividing  the  soap  in  equal  sections 
was  also  there.    This  instrument  had  been  made  for 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS  25 

her  and  presented  as  a  valued  gift  by  a  journeyman 
mechanician  with  whom  she  had  at  one  time  been 
as  good  as  engaged.  From  him,  too,  came  a  gleaming 
small  brass  mortar  for  the  pulverization  of  spices. 
This  decorated  the  edge  of  her  cupboard,  right  be- 
tween the  blue  china  tea  can  and  the  painted  flower 
vase.  For  long  such  a  dainty  little  mortar  had  been 
her  special  desire,  and  the  attentive  mechanician  was 
therefore  extremely  welcome  when  he  appeared  one 
afternoon  on  her  birthday  and  likewise  brought  along 
something  to  put  the  mortar  to  its  legitimate  use: 
a  boxful  of  cinnamon,  lump  sugar,  cloves  and  pepper. 
The  mortar  itself  he  hung,  before  entering  at  the 
door,  by  one  of  its  handles  to  his  little  finger,  and  with 
the  pestle  he  started  a  gay  tinkling,  just  like  a  bell, 
so  that  out  of  the  adventure  grew  a  jolly  day  of  fes- 
tivity. However,  shortly  afterwards  the  false  scoun- 
drel fled  from  the  district,  and  was  never  heard  of 
more.  Besides  that,  his  master  even  demanded  the 
return  of  the  mortar,  since  the  fugitive  had  taken  it 
from  his  shop,  but  had  forgotten  to  pay  for  it.  But 
Zues  did  not  deliver  up  this  valuable  object.  On 
the  contrary,  she  went  to  law  for  its  undisputed  pos- 
session, and  in  court  she  defended  her  claim  valiantly, 
basing  her  rights  on  the  fact  that  she  had  washed, 
starched  and  ironed  a  set  of  "dickies"  for  the  vanished 
lover./  Those  days,  the  days  when  she  was  forced 
to  deiend  her  rights  to  the  mortar  in  open  court,  were 
the  most  conspicuous  and  painful  of  her  whole  life, 


26  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

since  she  with  her  deep  feelings  felt  these  things  and 
more  particularly  her  appearance  in  court  for  the  sake 
of  such  delicate  affairs  much  more  keenly  than  others 
of  a  lighter  disposition  would  have  done.  All  the  same 
she  scored  a  victory  and  kept  her  mortar. 

If,  however,  this  neat  soap  gallery  proclaimed  her 
exact  working  tactics  and  her  passion  for  toil,  a  row 
of  books,  arranged  in  orderly  fashion  on  the  window 
ledge,  did  honor  to  her  religious  and  disciplined  mind. 
These  books  were  of  a  miscellaneous  description,  and 
she  read  and  reread  them  studiously  on  Sundays.  She 
still  possessed  all  her  school  books,  never  having  lost 
a  single  one  of  them.  She  also  still  carried  in  her 
head  all  her  little  stock  of  scholastic  learning  acquired 
at  school;  she  knew  the  whole  catechism  by  heart, 
as  well  as  the  contents  of  the  grammar,  of  the  arith- 
metic, of  her  geography  book,  of  the  collection  of 
biblical  stories,  and  of  the  various  readers  and  spellers. 
Then  she  also  owned  some  of  the  pretty  tales  by 
Chris toph  Schmid  and  the  latter's  short  novelettes, 
with  handsome  verses  at  the  end,  at  least  a  half  dozen 
of  sundry  treasuries  of  poetry  and  gatherings  of  popu- 
lar fairy  tales,  a  number  of  almanacs  full  of  speci- 
mens of  homely  wisdom  and  practical  experience, 
several  precise  and  remarkable  prophecies  of  tre- 
mendous events  to  come,  a  guide  for  laying  the  cards, 
a  book  of  edification  for  every  day  of  the  year  intended 
for  the  use  of  thoughtful  virgins,  and  an  old  and 
slightly  damaged  copy  of  Schiller's  "The  Robbers," 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    27 

which  she  slowly  perused  again  and  again,  as  often 
as  she  feared  she  might  begin  to  forget  this  stirring 
drama.  And  each  time  she  read  it,  the  play  appealed 
to  her  sentimental  heart  anew,  so  that  she  made 
constant  references  to  it  and  commented  in  a  highly 
praiseworthy  manner  on  the  various  personages  pre- 
sented in  it.  And  really  all  there  was  in  these  books 
she  also  retained  in  her  memory,  and  understood 
exceedingly  well  how  to  speak  about  them  and  about 
many  other  things  as  well.  When  she  felt  cheerful 
and  contented  and  did  not  have  to  hasten  her  labors 
too  greatly,  speech  flowed  continuously  from  her  lips, 
and  everything  under  the  sun  she  knew  how  to  judge 
and  to  put  into  its  proper  category.  Young  and  old, 
high  and  low,  learned  and  unlearned,  they  all  were 
compelled  to  listen  and  to  receive  instruction  from  her. 
First,  she  would  hear  everybody  out,  meanwhile 
smilingly  and  sensibly  straightening  out  the  case  in 
her  wise  little  head.  And  then,  having  now  perceived 
whither  all  these  plaints  or  fears  tended,  she  would 
solve  the  more  or  less  knotty  problem  at  a  stroke. 
Sometimes  she  would  speak  so  unctuously  and  elabo- 
rately on  matters  that  irreverent  criticasters  had 
compared  her  to  learned  blind  persons  who  have  never 
had  sight  of  the  world  and  whose  sole  solace  it  is  to 
hear  themselves  talk. 

From  the  time  she  went  to  the  town  school  and 
from  her  lessons  of  instruction  before  she  was  con- 
firmed by  the  pastor,  she  had  retained  the  habit  of 


28  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

composing,  from  time  to  time,  essays  and  exercises, 
and  thus  it  was  that  she  would,  on  quiet  Sundays, 
laboriously  write  out  the  most  marvelous  compositions. 
One  of  her  favorite  methods  in  doing  this  was  to  seize 
upon  some  melodious  title  that  she  had  heard  of  or 
read  in  the  course  of  the  week,  and  taking  this,  so  to 
speak,  as  her  text,  would  proceed  to  pile  up  from  it 
the  most  wonderful  conclusions  and  deductions,  not 
infrequently  culminating  in  very  odd  or  nonsensical 
dicta.  Page  on  page  of  this  balderdash  she  would 
perpetrate,  just  as  it  issued  from  the  convolutions 
of  her  silly  brain.  Such  themes,  for  example,  as 
"The  Various  Beneficent  Uses  of  a  Sickbed,"  "About 
Death,"  "About  the  Wholesomeness  of  Resignation," 
"About  the  Giant  Size  of  the  World,"  "About  the 
Secrets  of  Life  Eternal,"  "About  Residence  in  the 
Country,"  "About  Nature,"  "About  Dreams,"  "About 
Love,"  "About  Redemption  and  Christ,"  "Three 
Points  in  the  Theory  of  Self -Justification,"  "Thoughts 
about  ImmortaHty,"  she  often  solved  in  her  own  easy 
way.  Then  she  would  read  aloud  to  her  friends  and 
admirers  these  productions,  and  it  was  a  supreme  proof 
of  her  special  regard  and  affection  for  her  to  present 
one  or  the  other  of  them  to  a  close  friend.  Such 
gifts,  she  insisted  on,  had  to  be  placed  within  the 
pages  of  a  Bible,  that  is,  if  the  recipient  happened  to 
have  one. 

This  leaning  of  Zues'  nature  towards  religious  ec- 
stasy   and    contemplation   had  once  gained    her    the 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    29 

profound  and  respectful  affection  of  a  young  book- 
binder, a  man  who  read  every  book  he  bound  and  who 
was,  besides,  both  ambitious  and  enthusiastic.  When- 
ever he  brought  his  bundle  of  soiled  linen  to  Zues' 
mother,  he  deemed  himself  to  be  in  paradise,  for  he 
swallowed  greedily  all  of  the  maiden's  thoughts,  and 
her  boldest  figures  of  speech  now  and  then,  he  shyly 
said,  would  remind  him  of  things  he  had  dared  to 
think  himself,  but  which  he  had  never  had  the  skill 
and  the  courage  to  frame  into  words.  Bashfully 
and  humbly  he  approached  this  talented  virgin, 
who  was  by  turns  severe  and  eloquent,  and  she  deigned 
to  suffer  this  modest  intercourse  and  held  him  in 
leading-strings  for  a  whole  year,  not,  however,  without 
making  the  hopelessness  of  his  suit  plain  to  him, 
gently  but  determinedly.  For  inasmuch  as  he  was 
nine  years  her  junior,  poor  as  a  church  mouse  and 
awkward  in  gaining  a  living,  men  of  his  calling  not 
being  in  clover  in  Seldwyla  anyhow,  since  people 
there  do  not  read  much  and,  consequently,  have  few 
books  to  bind,  she  never  for  a  moment  hid  from  her- 
self the  impossibility  of  a  union.  She  merely  found 
it  pleasant  to  develop  his  mind  and  character  and  to 
furnish  her  own  as  a  model  to  strive  after.  Her 
own  powers  of  resignation  were  all  the  time  for  him 
to  take  pattern  by,  and  so  she  embalmed  his  aspirations 
in  an  iridescent  cloud  of  phrases.  And  he  on  his 
part  would  listen  modestly,  and  once  or  twice  find 
heart  to  risk  a  beautiful  sentence  himself.    This  she 


so  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

invariably  answered  by  instantly  killing  his  obser- 
vation with  a  finer  one.  That  year,  when  she  calmly 
received  the  adoration  of  this  youth,  was  reckoned  by 
her  the  most  ethereal  and  noblest  of  her  existence, 
since  it  was  not  disturbed  by  a  single  breath  from 
the  lower  and  material  spheres,  and  the  young  man 
during  it  bound  anew  all  her  books,  and  with  infinite 
pains  wrought  night  after  night  toward  the  ultimate 
completion  of  an  artful  and  precious  monument  of 
his  adoration  for  her.  This  was,  to  be  plain,  a  huge 
Chinese  temple  of  pasteboard,  containing  innumer- 
able tiny  compartments  and  secret  receptacles,  and 
which  might  be  entirely  taken  apart  and  reconstructed 
on  following  carefully  previous  instructions.  This 
miracle  was  pasted  all  over  with  the  finest  samples 
of  varicolored  and  glazed  paper,  and  everywhere 
ornamented  with  gilt  borders.  Minute  mirrors  inside 
colonnaded  halls  of  state  reflected  the  gay  colors, 
and  by  removing  one  section  of  the  structure  or  open- 
ing another  one  there  were  more  mirrors  and  hidden 
pictures,  nosegays  of  paper  or  loving  couples.  The 
curving  or  shelving  roofs  were  everywhere  hung  with 
little  bells.  Even  a  small  stand  for  a  lady's  watch 
was  there,  with  hooks  to  hang  it  up  on  and  with  other 
hooks  to  trail  a  slender  meandering  chain  through. 
Only  up  to  now  no  watchmaker  had  yet  offered  a 
pretty  watch  or  a  chain  to  decorate  this  altar  with. 
An  enormous  deal  of  trouble  and  skill  had  been  wasted 
on  this  pasteboard  temple,  and  its  ground  plan  was 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    31 

just  as  correct  as  the  work  itself.  And  when  this 
monument  of  a  year  passed  jointly  so  pleasantly 
had  been  duly  accepted,  Zues  Buenzlin  encouraged 
the  good  bookbinder,  doing  violence  to  her  own  well- 
regulated  heart,  to  tear  himself  away  from  the  town 
and  to  set  once  more  his  staff  for  a  wandering  life. 
She  Tainted  out  with  perfect  justice  that  the  whole 
wod^M:ood  open  to  him,  and  she  assured  him  that 
now/naving  schooled  and  ennobled  his  heart  by 
improving  his  acquaintance  with  herself,  happiness 
elsewhere  would  certainly  be  in  store  for  him.  She 
would  never  forget  him  and  retire  into  solitude.  And 
indeed,  the  young  fellow  was  so  much  affected  by  these 
moral  exhortations  that  he  shed  a  few  melancholy 
tears  in  passing  the  town  gate  on  his  way.  His  master- 
piece, however,  since  stood  on  top  of  Zues'  old- 
fashioned  clothes  press,  daintily  covered  by  a  veil 
of  green  gauze,  thus  defying  dust  and  profane  gaze. 
She  considered  it  so  much  of  a  sacred  relic  that  she 
kept  it  intact  and  without  even  placing  anything  what- 
ever into  those  many  tiny  recesses  of  the  temple. 
In  her  memory  he  continued  to  live  as  ^(Emmanuel,'; 
although  his  real  name  had  beenJVeit.  And  she  told 
everyone  with  whom  she  discussed  the  case  that 
Emmanuel  alone  had  completely  understood  her 
inner  self.  This  she  said  now  that  he  was  gone,  but 
while  he  had  been  with  her  in  the  flesh  she  had  been 
of  different  opinion,  for  she  had  rarely  admitted  to 
him  that  he  was  right,  deeming  it  wiser  to  thus  urge 


32  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

him  OR  to  higher  and  ever  higher  endeavor  in  his 
search  of  a  perfect  agreement  of  mind  with  his  idol. 
Indeed,  she  had  more  than  once  intimated  to  him, 
at  times  when  he  hoped  he  had  at  last  fully  entered 
the  arcana  of  her  soul,  that  he  was  farther  and  farther 
from  it. 

But  he,  too,  Veit-Emmanuel,  played  her  g^little 
trick.  He  had  placed  in  a  false  bottom,  ii]^B|  of 
the  diminutive  apartments  of  his  pasteboard^  fairy 
palace,  the  most  touching  of  all  love  letters,  bedewed 
with  his  tears,  wherein  he  confessed  his  bitter  grief 
at  parting  from  her,  his  love,  his  worship  and  his 
subHme  steadfastness,  and  in  such  passionate  and 
sincere  terms  had  he  done  this  as  only  genuine  feeling 
can  find,  even  if  it  has  lost  itself  in  a  cul-de-sac.  Such 
touching,  such  moving  things  he  had  never  said  to 
her,  simply  because  she  never  would  give  him  the 
chance,  having  always  interrupted  him  when  he  was 
on  the  point  of  doing  so.  But  as  she  had  not  the  slight- 
est suspicion  that  any  such  document  had  been  put 
away  within  the  temple,  she  never  found  the  missive 
and  thus  fate  for  once  dealt  justly  and  did  not  let  a 
false  beauty  see  that  which  she  was  not  worthy  of. 
And  it  was  also  a  symbol  that  she  it  was  who  had  not 
fathomed  the  somewhat  silly,  but  devoted  and  sincere 
heart  of  the  youth. 

For  a  long  while  she  had  been  praising  the  doings 
of  the  three  combmakers,  and  had  called  them  three 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    33 

decent  and  sensible  men;  for  she  had  closely  observed 
them.  When,  therefore,  Dietrich,  the  Suabian,  began 
to  linger  longer  and  longer  in  her  dwelHng  when  bring- 
ing or  fetching  his  shirt,  and  to  pay  court  to  her,  she 
treated  him  in  a  friendly  manner  and  kept  him  near 
her  for  hours  by  means  of  her  lofty  conversation. 
And  Dietrich  talked  back,  of  course,  to  please  her, 
jjist  as  much  as  he  could;  and  she  was  one  of  the  kind 
that  could  stand  more  than  a  fair  measure  of  laudation. 
Indeed,  one  might  truthfully  say  that  she  liked  it 
all  the  more  the  more  spiced  and  peppered  it  was. 
When  praising  her  wisdom  and  kindness,  she  kept 
still  as  a  mouse,  until  there  was  no  more  of  it,  where- 
upon she  would  with  heightened  color  pick  up  the 
thread  where  it  had  been  dropped,  and  would  touch 
up  the  painting  in  those  spots  where  it  seemed  to 
require  a  trifle  of  additional  color.  And  Dietrich 
had  not  been  going  back  and  forth  in  her  house  for 
any  great  length  of  time  when  she  showed  him  that 
mortgage  of  hers,  and  he  thereupon  began  to  exude 
a  quiet,  sedate  species  of  self-satisfaction,  and  began 
to  behave  toward  his  rivals  with  such  stealth  as  though 
he  had  invented  the  perpetuum  mobile.  Jobst  and 
Fridolin,  however,  soon  unearthed  his  secret,  and 
they  were  amazed  at  the  depth  of  his  dissimulation 
and  at  his  cleverness.  Jobst  above  all  clutched  his 
hair  and  tore  out  a  good  handful  of  it;  for  had  he 
himself  not  been  going  to  the  same  house  for  a  long 
while,  and  had  it  ever  occurred  to  him  to  look  for 


34  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

anything  there  but  his  clean  linen?  Rather,  he  had 
hitherto  almost  hated  the  washerwomen  because 
he  had  been  forced  to  dig  up  a  few  stuyvers  every 
week  to  pay  them.  Never  had  he  thought  of  marriage, 
because  he  was  unable  to  conceive  of  a  wife  under 
any  other  aspect  than  that  of  a  being  that  wanted 
something  out  of  him  which  he  did  not  deem  her  due, 
and  to  expect  something  from  such  a  feminine  creature 
that  might  be  of  advantage  to  him  had  never  entered 
his  thoughts,  since  he  had  confidence  only  in  himself, 
and  his  calculations  had  so  far  never  gone  beyond 
the  narrowest  horizon,  that  of  his  secret.  But  now 
reflecting  deep  and  serious  he  reached  the  determi- 
nation to  outdo  this  sly  little  Suabian,  for  if  the  latter 
should  really  succeed  in  getting  hold  of  Dame  Zues' 
seven  hundred  florins,  he  might  become  a  keen  com- 
petitor. The  seven  hundred  florins,  too,  suddenly 
shone  and  glittered  very  differently,  in  the  eyes  both 
of  the  Saxon  and  of  the  Bavarian.  Thus  it  was  that 
Dietrich,  the  man  of  invention,  had  discovered  a 
land  which  soon  became  the  joint  property  of  the  three, 
and  thus  shared  the  hard  lot  of  all  discoverers,  for  the 
two  others  at  once  got  on  the  same  track  and  likewise 
became  steady  callers  on  Zues  Buenzlin.  She  there- 
fore saw  herself  surrounded  by  a  whole  court  of  decent 
and  respectable  combmakers.  That  she  reUshed 
greatly;  never  before  had  she  had  a  number  of  admir- 
ers at  one  time.  It  became  a  novel  entertainment 
for  her  shrewd  mind  to  handle  these  three  with  the 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    35 

greatest  impartiality  and  skill,  to  keep  them  at  all 
times  within  bounds  and  cool  reason,  and  to  thus 
influence  them  by  frequent  speeches  in  favor  of  the 
beauties  of  resignation  and  unselfishness  until  Heaven 
itself  should  by  some  act  of  intervention  decide  matters 
irrevocably. 

As  each  of  the  three  had  confided  to  her  his  secret 
and  his  plans,  she  immediately  made  up  her  mind 
to  render  happy  that  one  who  really  would  attain 
his  goal  and  become  owner  of  the  business.  And  in 
thus  deciding  in  her  own  heart  how  she  should  proceed, 
she  from  that  hour  on  deliberately  excluded  the  Sua- 
bian,  since  he  could  not  succeed  except  through  and 
by  her  money.  But  while  thus  actually  discarding 
the  Suabian  as  a  possible  candidate  for  her  hand, 
she  reflected  that,  after  all,  he  was  the  youngest, 
handsomest  and  most  amiable  of  the  trio,  and  thus 
she  would  spare  for  him  many  a  token  of  regard  and 
confidence,  and  lull  him  into  the  belief  that  his  chances 
were  the  best.  But  while  so  doing,  she  knew  how  to 
arouse  the  jealousy  of  the  other  two,  and  thus  spur 
them  on  to  ~gf eater  zeal.  And  so  it  came  to  pass  that 
Dietrich,  this  poor  Columbus  who  had  first  sighted 
and  nearly  taken  possession  of  the  pretty  land,  became 
nothing  but  a  mere  pawn  in  her  game,  nothing  but  the 
poor  fool  who  unconsciously  assisted  in  the  angling 
for  the  real  fish.  Meanwhile  all  three  of  them  assidu- 
ously wooed  and  courted  the  coy  maiden,  running  a 
close  race  in  the  difficult  art  of  showing  all  the  time 


^6  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

devotion,  modesty  and  sense,  while  being  kept  by  the 
bridle.  She  on  her  part  was  in  her  element,  for  she 
forever  told  them  to  be  unselfish  and  to  practice 
resignation.  When  the  whole  four  now  and  then 
happened  to  be  together,  they  made  the  impression 
of  a  singular  conventicle  where  the  queerest  remarks 
were  being  expressed.  And  despite  of  all  their  timidity 
and  humility  it  would  happen  once  in  a  while  that 
one  of  the  three,  suddenly  dropping  his  hosannahs 
in  praise  of  the  rare  gifts  and  virtues  of  the  maiden, 
would  plunge  into  a  measure  of  self-laudation.  At 
such  moments  it  was  edifying  and  truly  touching 
to  see  Zues  gently  interrupt  the  rash  one  and  chide 
him  for  his  breach  of  good  manners.  She  would  then 
shame  him  by  forcing  him  to  listen  to  a  homily  on 
his  rivals. 

However,  this  was  really  a  hard  sort  of  life  for  the 
poor  combmakers  to  lead.  No  matter  how  much 
ordinarily  they  had  themselves  under  control,  now 
that  a  woman  had  entered  as  a  factor  into  their  game, 
there  would  occur  wholly  novel  spurts  of  jealousy, 
of  fear,  of  misgiving,  and  of  hope.  What  with  a  fury 
of  work  and  increased  economy,  they  almost  killed 
themselves  and  certainly  lost  flesh.  They  became 
melancholy,  and  while  before  people  —  and  especially 
before  Zues  —  they  endeavored  hard  to  maintain  the 
appearance  of  the  utmost  harmony,  they  scarcely 
spoke  a  word  to  each  other  when  alone  together  at 
work  or  in  their  common  sleeping  chamber,  lay  down 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    37 

sighing  in  their  joint  bed,  and  dreamed  of  murder, 
albeit  still  resting  quietly  and  immovably  one  next 
the  other  as  so  many  sticks.  One  and  the  same  dream 
hovered  nightly  over  the  trio,  until  really  once  it 
came  to  one  of  the  sleepers,  so  that  Jobst  in  his  place 
by  the  wall  turned  over  violently  and  kicked  Dietrich. 
Dietrich  avoided  the  kick  and  gave  Jobst  a  hard 
push,  and  now  there  was  among  the  three  sleepy 
combmakers  an  outbreak  of  elemental  wrath.  The 
most,  tremendous  row  ensued  in  the  bed,  and  for  fully 
three  minutes  they  treated  each  other  to  fearful  lunges, 
kicks  and  pushes,  so  that  all  the  six  legs  formed  an 
inextricable  tangle,  until  with  a  thundering  crash 
they  rolled  out  of  bed  and  began  to  howl  like 
savage  beasts.  Becoming  fully  awake  they  at  first 
thought  the  devil  were  after  them  or  else  thieves  had 
entered  their  room.  Screaming  they  rose  quickly. 
Jobst  took  his  stand  upon  his  tile;  Fridolin  planted 
himself  firmly  upon  his  own,  and  Dietrich  did  the 
like  upon  that  tile  beneath  which  his  still  rather  slender 
savings  reposed.  And  thus  standing  in  a  triangle, 
they  worked  their  arms  like  flails  and  shouted  their 
loudest:  "Get  out;  get  out!"  until  the  master  came 
rushing  up  from  below  and  after  a  while  quieted  the 
three  frenzied  fellows.  Trembling  then  with  fear, 
shame  and  anger,  they  crept  back  into  bed,  and  then, 
wide-awake,  lay  there  mute  until  dawn  came  and 
forced  them  to  rise. 
However,  the  nocturnal  spook  had  only  been  the 


38  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

prelude  to  something  worse.  For  at  breakfast  the 
master  let  them  know  that  for  the  time  being  he  had 
no  longer  need  of  three  journeymen,  and  that  two  of 
them  would  have  to  pack  up  their  bundle.  It  appeared 
that  they  had  defeated  their  own  object  by  hurrying 
and  hastening  work,  so  that  now  there  were  more 
wares  than  the  boss  was  able  to  dispose  of,  while  on 
the  other  hand,  he,  the  master,  himself  had  taken 
advantage  of  the  extreme  mood  for  work  his  men  had 
shown  for  months  to  lead  on  his  part  an  opulent 
and  disorderly  life,  spending  nearly  all  his  extra  gains 
in  riotous  quips.  Indeed,  when  the  details  of  his 
doings  became  public  it  turned  out  that  he  had  run 
into  such  an  amount  of  debt  that  the  load  of  it  came 
well-nigh  smothering  him.  Thus  it  came  about  that 
he,  looking  over  his  own  situation,  was  unable  to 
employ  or  support  his  three  workmen,  no  matter  how 
abstemious  they  were  and  how  intent  on  his  further 
profit.  For  consolation  he  told  them  that  he  was 
equally  fond  of  all  three  of  them  and  loath  to  tell 
either  to  go,  wherefore  he  had  made  up  his  mind  to 
leave  it  wholly  to  them  which  of  the  three  should 
leave  and  which  should  stay.  All  they  had  to  do, 
he  remarked  smilingly,  was  to  agree  among  themselves 
upon  that  point. 

But  they  were  unable  to  come  to  a  decision  as  to 
this.  Rather  they  stood  there  pale  as  ghosts,  and 
simpered  timidly  at  each  other.  Then  they  became 
tremendously    excited,    since    they    clearly   perceived 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    39 

that  the  most  momentous  hour  of  their  existence  was 
approaching.  For  they  judged  from  the  words  of 
the  master  that  he  would  not  be  able  to  continue 
the  business  much  longer,  and  that,  therefore,  it  would 
soon  become  an  object  of  sale.  The  goal,  then,  each 
of  them  had  striven  for  with  such  infinite  patience  and 
cunning  seemed  in  sight,  and  to  their  heated  fancy 
was  already  glittering  and  shining  like  a  new  Jeru- 
salem. And  now  came  this  awful  decree,  and  two  of 
them  would  have  to  turn  their  backs  upon  the  heavenly 
prospect.  It  was  almost  more  than  they  could  bear. 
After  a  very  brief  consultation  and  reflection  all  three 
of  them  went  to  see  the  master,  and  declared  with 
tearful  voices  that  rather  than  leave  him  they  would 
stay  on,  even  though  they  would  have  to  work  gratis. 
But  then  the  master  declared  jovially  that  evei^ 
that  case  he  had  no  further  use  for  all  the  three.  / 
of  them,  he  again  assured  them,  would  have  to  quit 
the  house.  They  fell  at  his  feet;  they  wrung  their 
hands;  they  asked  and  implored  him  to  let  them  stay 
on:  only  for  another  three  months,  for  one  month, 
for  a  fortnight.  The  master,  however,  after  at  first 
enjoying  the  humor  of  the  situation,  at  last  lost  all 
patience.  Besides,  he  was  perfectly  aware  what  their 
motive  in  all  this  pretended  loyalty  for  him  was, 
and  that  soured  his  temper.  Suddenly  an  idea  oc- 
curred to  him,  and  he  did  not  hesitate  to  make  them 
a  proposition. 
"Why,"  he  smiled,   "if  you  caimot  agree  among 


evej^in 
^  /Two 


40  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

yourselves  at  all  as  to  who  is  to  remain  and  who  to 
go,  I  will  tell  you  how  we  will  decide  this  matter. 
But  that  is  absolutely  the  last  proposal  I  shall  make 
to  you.  To-morrow  being  Sunday,  I  shall  pay  your 
wages;  you  pack  up  your  belongings,  get  ready  to  go 
forth  and  take  your  staffs.  Then  you  will  in  all  good 
faith  and  perfect  harmony  leave  jointly,  going  out  by 
whichever  gate  you  may  agree  upon,  and  march  on  the 
highroad  for  another  half-hour,  no  more,  no  less,  and 
then  stop.  Then  you  will  rest  yourselves  a  trifle, 
and  if  you  care  to  do  so,  you  may  even  drink  a  shop- 
pen  or  two.  Having  done  so,  you  will  all  three  of 
you  turn  once  more  and  walk  back  to  town,  and  who- 
ever will  then  first  ask  me  for  work,  him  I  will  keep, 
but  the  other  two  must  wander  forth  for  good  and 
all,  wherever  they  might  choose  to  go." 

Hearing  this  cruel  decision,  they  three  fell  once 
more  at  his  feet  and  begged  him  most  pitifully  to  have 
mercy  on  them  and  to  desist  from  his  plan.  But  the 
master,  who  by  this  time  began  to  anticipate  some  rare 
fun  in  his  wicked  soul,  was  obstinate  and  would  not 
listen  to  them,  hardening  himself.  Suddenly  the 
Suabian  sprang  up  and  ran  out  of  the  house  like  a 
man  demented,  across  the  street  to  Zues  Buenzlin. 
Scarcely  had  Jobst  and  the  Bavarian  observed  that, 
when  they  ceased  to  lament  themselves  and  followed 
the  youngest.  Within  a  very  brief  space  the  three 
of  them  were  seated  in  the  dwelling  of  the  frightened 
maiden. 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    41 

Zues  felt  rather  abashed  and  undecided  by  reason 
of  the  adventure  taking  such  an  unexpected  turn. 
But  she  calmed  herself,  and  viewing  the  matter  from 
her  own  particular  angle,  she  resolved  to  make  her 
plans  subservient  to  the  master's  odd  conceit.  In 
fact,  she  regarded  this  new  aspect  of  affairs  as  a  special 
dispensation  of  Providence.  Touched  and  devout 
she  fetched  out  one  of  her  volumes,  then  with  her 
needle  at  random  pricked  among  the  leaves,  and  when 
she  opened  the  book  at  the  spot,  she  found  a  passage 
that  spoke  of  the  persistent  following  of  the  righteous 
path.  Next  she  made  the  three  guests  turn  up  pas- 
sages blindfolded,  and  all  that  was  found  treated  of 
walking  along  the  narrow  way,  of  advancing  without 
looking  backwards,  in  short,  of  nothing  but  running 
and  racing.  Thus,  then,  she  decided.  Heaven  itself 
had  prescribed  the  projected  race  for  to-morrow. 
But  since  she  was  afraid  that  Dietrich,  as  being  the 
youngest  and  the  ablest  in  jumping,  walking,  and 
running,  and  thus  most  likely  to  win  the  palm  if 
left  without  supervision,  she  made  up  her  mind  to  go 
herself  along  with  the  three  lovers,  and  to  watch  for 
an  opportunity  for  bending  or  influencing  possibly 
the  outcome  of  this  undertaking  in  accordance  with 
her  own  secret  desires.  For  she  wished,  as  we  must 
recall,  one  of  the  older  men  to  be  the  victor,  she  did 
not  care  which  of  the  two. 

In  furtherance  of  this  plan  she  insisted  that  the 
three  be  quiet  for  a  spell  and  cease  slandering  and 


42  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

berating  each  other,  but  rather  summon  themselves 
to  acquiescence  in  God's  will.  She  put  on  her  judicial 
air  and  said: 

"Know,  my  friends,  that  nothing  happens  here 
below  without  the  direction  and  sometimes  direct 
interference  of  Providence,  and  no  matter  if  the  plan 
of  your  master  be  unusual  and  singular,  we  must  look 
upon  it  as  ordered  by  higher  powers  than  he,  although 
it  may  be  that  he  has  not  even  an  inkHng  of  this. 
He  is  the  dumb  and  unconscious  instrument  in  the 
hands  of  the  Ruler.  Our  peaceable  and  harmonious 
intercourse  here  has  been  too  beautiful  altogether 
to  have  been  prolonged  much  farther.  For,  behold, 
all  the  good  things  in  life  are  but  transitory  and 
pass  away,  and  nothing  is  lasting  but  evil  things, 
the  loneHness  of  the  soul  and  the  persistence  of  sin, 
whereupon  we  feel  impelled  to  consider  all  this  and 
to  try  and  grasp  their  meaning  in  this  life  and  in  the 
life  to  come.  Hence,  too,  let  us  rather  separate 
before  the  wicked  demon  of  discord  raises  its  head 
amongst  us,  and  let  us  bid  each  other  farewell,  just 
as  do  the  soft  zephyrs  of  springtime  when  they  swiftly 
move  along  high  in  the  sky,  and  let  us  do  this  before 
the  rough  storms  of  autumn  overtake  us.  I  myself 
will  accompany  you  on  the  first  stage  of  your  hard 
road,  and  will  be  the  eyewitness  of  your  trial  race, 
so  that  you  will  start  on  it  with  a  good  courage  and 
so  that  you  know  behind  you  a  gentle  propelling  power, 
while  victory  winks  from  afar.    But  just  as  the  victor 


THE  THREE  DECENT   COMBMAKERS    43 

will  forbear  to  show  a  spirit  of  undue  pride,  those  who 
have  been  defeated  will  not  permit  themselves  to 
become  despondent  nor  to  load  their  souls  with  grief 
or  wrath  because  of  their  lack  of  success  in  the  ven- 
ture. They  will  depart  feeling  affection  for  him 
who  bears  the  palm,  and  will  enshrine  him  and  us  in 
their  inmost  heart.  They  will  fare  forth  into  the 
wide  world  with  joyous  disposition.  They  must 
reflect  on  the  fact  that  men  have  built  cities  galore 
that  outshine  in  their  splendors  and  beauties  Seldwyla 
by  far.  There  is,  for  instance,  a  huge  and  memorable 
city  wherein  dwells  the  Father  of  all  Christendom. 
And  Paris,  too,  is  quite  a  mighty  town,  where  may 
be  found  innumerable  souls  and  many  fine  palaces. 
And  in  Constantinople  there  rules  the  Sultan,  of 
Turkish  faith  is  he,  and  there  is  Lisbon,  once  destroyed 
by  an  earthquake,  but  since  reconstructed  finer  than 
ever.  Again  we  have  Vienna,  the  capital  of  Austria 
and  called  the  gay  imperial  city,  and  London  is  the 
wealthiest  town  of  all,  situated  in  Engelland,  along 
a  river  the  name  of  which  is  the  Thames.  Two  mil- 
lions of  human  beings,  they  say,  have  their  habitation 
there.  St.  Petersburg,  on  the  other  hand,  is  the  capital 
and  imperial  city  of  Russia,  whereas  Naples  is  the 
capital  of  the  kingdom  of  the  same  name,  near  which 
is  the  Vesuvius,  a  high  mountain  forever  breathing 
fire  and  smoke.  On  that  mountain,  according  to 
the  version  of  a  credible  witness,  a  lost  soul  once  upon 
a  time  appeared  to  a  ship's  captain,  as  I  have  read 


44  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

in  a  curious  book  of  travel,  which  soul  belonged  to 
John  Smidt,  who  one  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago 
was  a  godless  man,  and  who  now  commissioned  the 
said  captain  to  visit  his  descendants  in  Engelland,  so 
he  might  be  redeemed.  For  look  you,  the  entire 
mountain  is  the  abode  of  the  damned,  as  may  also 
be  read  in  the  tract  of  the  learned  Peter  Hasler  where 
he  discusses  the  probable  entrance  to  hell.  Many 
other  cities  there  are  indeed,  whereof  I  will  still  men- 
tion Milan,  and  Venice,  built  wholly  upon  water,  and 
Lyons,  and  Marseilles,  and  Strasbourg,  and  Cologne, 
and  Amsterdam.  Of  Paris  I  have  already  spoken, 
but  there  is  also  Nuremberg,  and  Augsburg,  and 
Frankfort,  and  Basle,  and  Berne,  and  Geneva,  all 
of  them  handsome  towns,  and  pretty  Zurich,  and 
besides  all  these  still  many  more  which  I  have  neither 
leisure  nor  inclination  to  enumerate  here.  For  every- 
thing has  its  limits,  excepting  the  inventive  genius 
of  man,  who  goes  everywhere  and  undertakes  any- 
thing which  seems  to  him  useful.  And  if  men  are 
just  everything  prospereth  with  them;  but  if  they 
are  unjust  they  will  perish  like  the  grass  of  the  fields 
and  vanish  like  smoke.  Many  are  called,  but  few 
are  chosen.  For  all  these  reasons  and  because  of 
others  to  which  our  duty  and  the  virtue  of  a  clear 
conscience  oblige  us,  we  will  now  submit  ourselves 
to  the  voice  of  fate.  Go  forth,  therefore,  and  prepare 
for  the  time  of  trial,  and  for  the  period  of  wandering, 
but  do  so  as  just  and  gentle  beings,  who  bear  their 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    45 

worth  within  themselves,  no  matter  whither  they 
may  go,  and  whose  staff  will  everywhere  take  root, 
who,  no  matter  what  their  calling  may  be  and  no 
matter  what  business  they  may  seize  upon,  are  always 
in  the  right  in  saying  to  themselves;  *I  have  chosen 
the  better  part.'" 

Of  all  this  the  combmakers  really  did  not  want 
to  hear  just  then,  but  on  the  contrary  insisted  that 
Zues  should  select  one  of  them  and  tell  him  to  remain 
in  Seldwyla,  and  each  one  of  them  in  saying  so  only 
thought  of  himself.  She,  however,  was  careful  to 
avoid  a  premature  choice.  On  the  contrary,  she  told 
them  bluntly  that  they  must  obey  her  on  pain  of 
forfeiting  her  friendship  forever.  At  once  Jobst,  the 
oldest  of  the  three,  skipped  off,  right  into  the  house 
of  their  ex-master,  and  to  perceive  that  and  follow 
him  in  haste,  was  the  work  of  an  instant,  since  they 
were  afraid  that  he  might  be  planning  something 
against  them  on  the  sly,  and  thus  the  trio  acted  all 
day  long,  whisking  about  like  falling  stars,  hither  and 
thither.  They  hated  each  other  like  three  spiders  in 
one  web.  Half  the  town  witnessed  this  queer  spec- 
tacle, observing  the  three  strangely  excited  comb- 
makers,  they  who  until  that  day  had  always  been  so 
orderly  and  quiet.  The  ancient  people  of  the  town 
could  not  but  feel  that  something  evil,  something 
tragic  was  underway,  and  they  would  nod  and  whisper 
to  one  another  of  their  fears.  Towards  nightfall,  how- 
ever, the  combmakers  became  tired  and  spent,  without 


46  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

having  reached  any  definite  conclusion,  and  in  that 
mood  they  retired  and  stretched  out  their  limbs  in 
the  old  bed,  with  chattering  teeth  and  half-sick  with 
impotent  rage.  One  by  one  they  crept  beneath  the 
covering,  and  there  they  lay,  as  though  felled  by  the 
hand  of  death  itself,  with  thoughts  in  turmoil  and 
confusion,  until  at  last  sleep  came  like  balm  for  their 
uproarious  minds. 

Jobst  was  first  to  waken,  at  early  dawn,  and  he  saw 
that  spring  was  weaving  its  garlands  and  that  the 
great  orb  was  rising  in  the  east,  in  a  mass  of  cloudlets 
of  dainty  hue.  The  first  rays  of  the  sun  were  already 
penetrating  the  dusky  chamber  wherein  he  had  been 
sleeping  for  the  past  six  years.  And  while  the  room 
assuredly  looked  bare  and  unattractive  enough,  it 
seemed  nevertheless  a  paradise  to  him,  a  paradise 
from  which  he  was  about  to  be  driven  thus  unjustly 
and  unfairly,  it  appeared  to  him.  He  let  his  eyes 
wander  all  over  the  walls,  and  counted  on  them  the 
traces  left  by  all  the  preceding  journeymen  that  had 
been  harbored  under  that  roof.  Here  there  was  a 
dark  stain  from  the  one  who  was  in  the  habit  of  rub- 
bing against  the  wall  his  greasy  pate;  there  another 
one  had  driven  in  a  nail,  on  which  he  used  to  hang 
his  long  pipe,  and,  sure  enough,  a  bit  of  scarlet  tape 
still  clung  to  the  nail.  How  good  and  harmless  had 
they  all  been,  all  those  that  had  come  and  gone,  while 
these  fellows  now,  spread  out  their  whole  length  next 
to  him  in  bed,  would  not  go.    Next  he  fastened  his 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    47 

glance  upon  the  objects  nearer  his  field  of  vision, 
those  objects  which  he  had  noticed  thousands  of  times 
before,  on  all  those  occasions  when  he  had  lain  in 
bed  in  a  contemplative  mood,  mornings,  nights,  or 
daytime,  and  when  he  had  enjoyed  in  his  own  peculiar 
way  the  bliss  of  existence,  free  of  cost  and  with  a 
serene  mind.  There  was,  for  example,  a  spot  in  the 
ceiling  where  the  wet  had  damaged  it.  This  spot 
had  often  set  his  imagination  at  work.  It  looked 
like  the  map  of  a  whole  country,  with  lakes  and  rivers 
and  cities,  and  a  group  of  grains  of  sand  represented 
an  isle  of  the  blessed.  Farther  down  a  long  bristle 
from  the  painter's  brush  attracted  Jobst's  wandering 
attention;  for  this  bristle  had  been  held  back  by  the 
blue  paint  and  was  embedded  in  it.  This  phenomenon 
interested  Jobst  greatly,  for  it  was  his  own  handiwork. 
Last  autumn  he  had  accidentally  discovered  a  small 
remnant  of  the  azure  paint,  and  to  utilize  it  had 
proceeded  to  spread  it  over  that  portion  of  the  ceiling 
nearest  to  him.  But  just  beyond  the  bristle  there 
was  a  very  slight  protuberance,  almost  like  a  chain 
of  mountains,  and  this  threw  its  shadow  across  the 
bristle  over  against  the  isle  of  the  blessed.  About 
this  rise  in  the  scenery  he  had  been  brooding  and 
speculating  the  whole  of  the  past  winter,  because  it 
seemed  to  him  that  it  had  not  been  there  formerly. 

And  as  he  now  cast  searching  glances  for  this  pro- 
tuberance and  could  not  find  it  despite  all  his  pains, 
he  thought  he  must  suddenly  have  gone  daft  when 


48  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

instead  of  it  he  discovered  a  tiny  bare  spot  on  the 
wall.  On  the  other  hand  he  noticed  that  the  small 
bluish  mountain  itself  was  moving.  Amazed  beyond 
measure  at  this  miracle,  Jobst  quickly  sat  up  and 
watched  the  cerulean  wonder  march  steadily  on:  the 
conviction  dawned  on  him  that  the  prodigy  was 
nothing  but  a  bedbug;  his  logical  deduction  then  was 
that  he  must  have  unawares  applied  a  coat  of  paint 
to  this  insect,  at  a  time  in  its  Hfe  when  it  was  already 
in  a  state  of  coma.  But  now  the  little  creature  had 
been  reawakened  under  the  warming  influence  of  the 
spring  sun,  had  started  on  a  tour  of  adventure,  and 
was  actually  and  bravely  ascending  the  steep  path- 
way on  the  wall,  ready  for  business,  without  in  the 
least  minding  its  blue  back  and  Jobst's  astonishment. 
Jobst  watched  the  meanderings  of  the  dear  little 
thing  with  concentrated  interest.  So  long  as  it  cut 
across  the  blue  paint  it  was  barely  visible;  but  now 
it  issued  forth  into  the  region  beyond,  traversing 
first  a  few  remaining  splotches  of  paint,  and  next 
wandering  diligently  among  the  darker  districts. 
With  softened  feelings  Jobst  sank  back  into  his  pil- 
lows. Generally  rather  indifferent  to  quips  of  mere 
fancy,  this  time  sentiment  struggled  uppermost. 
He  took  the  enterprising  bedbug  as  an  omen  for 
himself.  He,  too,  must  be  wandering  forth  again, 
seeking  new  pastures.  And  thankfully  and  resignedly 
he  thought  of  this  insect  as  a  model  for  himself  to 
strive  after.    In  this  frame  of  mind  he  resolved  to 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    49 

put  a  good  face  on  the  matter  and  to  bow  to  the  un- 
avoidable. He  meant  to  start  at  once.  Indulging 
these  wise  reflections  his  natural  wisdom  and  fore- 
thought slowly  came  back  to  him,  however,  and 
resuming  his  train  of  deliberations  he  at  last  con- 
cluded that  there  might  not  be  any  necessity  for 
clearing  out  at  all.  By  reassuming  his  habitual 
modesty  and  resignation  and  submitting  in  that 
spirit  to  the  trial  at  hand,  it  might  come  to  pass, 
after  all,  that  he  would  overcome  his  rivals.  Softly 
and  slowly,  therefore,  he  now  rose,  and  began  to  ar- 
range his  belongings;  but  above  all  he  dug  up  his 
hidden  treasure  and  started  to  pack  it  away,  lowest 
in  his  knapsack.  While  thus  engaged  the  others 
also  awoke.  And  when  they  observed  Jobst  packing 
up  his  things  in  that  matter-of-fact,  unobtrusive 
manner,  they  grew  more  and  more  astonished,  and 
this  feeling  increased  when  Jobst  spoke  to  them  in 
a  conciliatory  tone  and  wished  them  a  good  morning. 
More  than  that,  though,  he  did  not  say,  but  con- 
tinued peaceably  in  his  task.  Instantly,  however, 
not  being  able  to  explain  to  themselves  his  behavior, 
they  began  to  suspect  a  ruse,  a  deep-laid  scheme,  and 
to  imitate  him.  At  the  same  time  they  closely  watched 
him,  curious  to  find  out  what  he  would  do  next.  ..-^^ 
It  was  ludicrous  as  well  to  observe  the  other  two 
now  exhuming  their  hoards  quite  openly  from  under- 
neath their  own  tiles,  and  to  put  them  away,  without 
first  counting   them   over,   in   their  knapsacks.     For 

/ 


50  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

they  had  known  for  long  that  each  was  aware  of  the 
secret  of  the  others,  and  according  to  the  old-fashioned 
honorable  traditions  of  their  guild  not  one  of  them 
suspected  the  others  of  theft.  Each  of  them,  in  fact, 
was  fully  convinced  that  they  would  not  be  robbed. 
For  it  is  an  iron-clad  custom  among  traveling  journey- 
men, soldiers,  and  similar  folk  that  nothing  must  be 
locked  up  and  that  there  must  be  no  suspicion  of 
foul  play. 

In  this  way  they  at  last  were  ready  to  start.  The 
master  paid  each  his  wages,  and  handed  them  back 
their  service  booklets,  wherein  on  the  part  of  the 
town  authorities  and  of  the  master  himself  there  were 
inscribed  the  most  satisfactory  certificates  as  to  good 
behavior  and  steadiness  of  conduct.  A  minute  later 
they  stood,  in  a  state  of  soft  melancholy,  before  the 
house  door  of  Zues  BuenzHn,  each  dressed  in  a  long 
brown  coat,  with  a  duster  above  that,  and  their  hats, 
albeit  by  no  means  new  or  fashionable,  covered  with 
a  tight  casing  of  oil  cloth.  Each  carried  a  tiny  van 
strapped  to  his  knapsack  to  enable  him,  as  soon  as 
long-distance  walking  should  start,  to  pull  his  heavy 
baggage  with  greater  ease.  The  small  wheels  belong- 
ing to  this  contraption  stood  up  high  above  their 
shoulders.  Jobst  was  assisted  in  walking  by  a  decent 
bamboo  cane,  Fridohn  by  a  staff  of  ash  painted  all 
over  with  red  and  black  stripes,  and  Dietrich  by  a 
fantastic  baton  around  which  were  curling  carved 
branches.    But  he  was  almost  ashamed  of  this  absurd 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    51 

and  bragging  thing,  since  it  dated  from  the  first  days 
of  his  pilgrimage,  a  time  when  he  had  not  yet  attained 
to  the  sober  view  of  Hfe  as  since.  Many  neighbors 
and  their  children  lined  the  way  and  wished  these 
three  serious-minded  men  godspeed. 

But  now  Zues  showed  at  the  door,  her  mien  even 
more  solemn  than  usual,  and  at  the  head  of  the  little 
procession  she  went  on  with  the  three  courageously 
to  beyond  the  town  gate.  In  their  honor  she  had 
donned  some  of  her  choicest  finery.  She  wore  a  huge 
hat  draped  with  broad  yellow  ribbons,  a  pink  caHco 
dress  trimmed  in  a  style  of  ten  years  ago,  a  black 
velvet  scarf  and  shoes  of  red  morocco  with  fringes. 
With  this  costume  she  also  carried  a  reticule  of  green 
silk  filled  with  dried  pears  and  prunes,  and  had  a 
small  parasol  in  her  other  hand  on  top  of  which  there 
could  be  seen  an  ivory  ornament  carved  in  the  shape 
of  a  lyre.  She  had  also  hung  around  her  fair  neck 
the  locket  with  the  monument  of  hair,  and  in  front  of 
her  chaste  bosom  had  pinned  on  the  gold  forget-me- 
not,  and  wore  white  knit  gloves.  Dainty  and  pleasant 
she  looked  in  this  guise;  her  countenance  was  slightly 
flushed  and  her  bosom  heaved  higher  than  its  wont, 
and  the  departing  combmakers  scarcely  were  able  to 
conceal  their  feelings  of  utter  woe  and  sorrow  at  the 
prospect  of  losing  her.  For  even  their  extreme  situ- 
ation, the  lovely  spring  weather,  and  Zues'  exquisite 
finery,  or  all  of  it  together  mingled  with  their  senti- 
ments of  expectation  and  anxiety  something  of  what 


52  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

habitually  is  denominated  Love.  Arrived  beyond 
the  town  gate,  though,  the  winsome  maiden  encouraged 
her  three  admirers  to  place  their  heavy  knapsacks 
upon  those  tiny  wheels  and  to  pull  their  loads,  so  as 
not  to  tire  themselves  needlessly.  This  they  did,  and 
as  they  steadily  began  to  cHmb  the  steep  heights  that 
rose  just  outside  the  town,  it  looked  for  all  the  world 
almost  like  a  train  of  light  mountain  guns  moving 
slowly  upwards,  in  order  to  form  a  battery  for  attack. 
And  when  they  had  thus  proceeded  for  half  an  hour 
they  reached  a  pleasant  hilltop,  where  they  halted. 
A  crossroad  was  there,  and  they  sat  down  beneath 
a  linden  tree,  in  a  semicircle,  whence  a  far  view  was 
obtainable  across  forests  and  lakes  and  villages. 
Zues  brought  out  her  reticule  and  handed  to  each  one 
a  handful  of  pears  and  prunes,  in  order  to  restore 
themselves.  Thus  they  sat  for  quite  a  while,  solemn 
and  silent,  merely  causing  a  slight  noise  by  the  slow 
degustation  of  the  sweet  fruit. 

Then  Zues,  throwing  away  a  prune  pit  and  drying 
her  hands  on  the  grass,  drew  breath  and  began  to 
speak:  "Dear  friends,"  she  said,  "only  see  how 
beautiful  and  how  big  the  world  is,  all  around  full  of 
fine  things  and  of  human  habitations!  And  yet  1 
should  wager  that  in  this  fateful  hour  there  are  no- 
where else  seated  together  four  such  decent  and  just 
souls  as  are  seated  here  under  this  tree,  four  who  are 
so  sensible  and  so  gentle  in  all  their  doings,  so  inclined 
to  all  useful  and  laborious  exercises,  so  given  to  virtues 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    $3 

like  economy,  peaceableness,  and  dutiful  friendship. 
How  many  flowers  are  surrounding  us  here,  of 
every  kind,  such  as  early  spring  produces,  especially 
yellow  cowslips,  from  which  a  wholesome  and  well- 
tasting  tea  may  be  prepared.  But  are  these  flowers,  I 
ask  you,  as  decent  and  as  diligent,  as  economical  and 
cautious,  as  apt  to  think  correct  and  useful  thoughts? 
No,  indeed,  they  are  ignorant  and  soulless  things,  and 
without  benefiting  themselves  they  waste  time  and 
opportunity,  and  no  matter  how  nice  they  may  look 
in  a  short  time  they  turn  into  dead  and  useless  hay, 
while  we  with  our  virtues  are  far  superior  to  them  and 
also  do  not  yield  to  them  in  beauty  of  outward  shape. 
For  it  was  God  who  created  us  after  His  image  and 
blew  His  divine  breath  into  us.  Ah,  would  it  were 
possible  to  keep  seated  here  in  this  spot  for  all  eternity, 
in  this  paradise  and  in  our  present  state  of  innocency. 
Indeed,  my  friends,  it  seems  to  me  that  we  all  of  us 
at  this  hour  are  in  a  state  of  innocency,  although 
ennobled  by  sinless  consciousness  and  intelligence, 
for  all  four  of  us  are  able,  God  be  praised,  to  read  and 
write,  and  we  have,  each  of  us,  likewise  acquired  a 
craft,  a  useful  calling.  For  many  things,  I  am  aware, 
I  have  talent  and  skill,  and  would  engage  to  do  many 
things  which  even  the  most  learned  young  lady  would 
be  unable  to  do,  that  is,  if  I  were  inclined  to  go  out- 
side of  and  beyond  my  proper  station.  But  modesty 
and  humility  are  the  dearest  virtues  of  a  decent  maiden, 
and  it  is  enough  for  me  to  know  that  my  intellectual 


54  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

gifts  are  not  worthless  nor  despised  by  the  judicious 
and  those  of  a  keener  discernment.  Many  have 
before  this  wooed  me,  men  who  were  not  worthy 
of  me,  and  now  I  see  three  just  and  decent  bachelors 
assembled  around  me,  each  of  whom  is  as  worthy 
to  win  me  as  are  the  others.  From  this,  my  friends, 
you  may  measure  and  imagine  how  my  own  heart  must 
long  for  a  solution  in  view  of  this  unheard-of  abundance, 
and  may  each  of  you  take  pattern  by  me  and  think 
for  the  moment  that  he,  too,  were  surrounded  by 
three  virgins,  each  equally  lovely  and  worthy  to  be 
loved,  and  all  three  desirous  to  wed  and  possess  him, 
and  that  on  that  account  it  might  happen  that  he 
would  be  unable  to  make  up  his  mind  to  incline  to  this 
or  that  one,  and  therefore  at  last  unable  to  wed  any. 
Only  place  yourselves  in  your  thoughts  in  my  stead: 
fancy  that  each  of  you  were  courted  simultaneously 
by  three  Miss  Buenzlins  at  once,  and  were  thus  seated 
around  you  the  way  we  are  seated  here,  dressed  as 
I  am,  and  of  similarly  alluring  exterior,  so  that  I 
in  a  manner  of  speaking  would  exist  ninefold,  and  that 
they  all  were  regarding  you  with  love-lorn  eyes,  and 
were  desiring  to  possess  you  with  great  strength  of 
feeling.     Can  you  do  that?" 

The  three  lovers  ceased  for  a  moment  to  chew  their 
dried  prunes,  and  made  an  attempt  to  follow  the 
maiden's  flight  of  fancy,  their  faces  meanwhile  assum- 
ing a  peculiarly  sheep-like  cast.  But  after  a  while 
the   Suabian,   as   the  greatest   thinker   and  inventor 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    55 

amongst  them,  seemed  to  grasp  the  idea,  and  said 
with  a  voluptuous  grin:  "Well,  most  beloved  Miss 
Zues,  if  you  have  no  objection,  I  should  indeed  like 
to  see  you  hover  around  here  not  only  threefold  but 
a  hundredfold,  and  to  have  you  look  at  me  with  love- 
lorn eyes  and  to  offer  me  a  thousand  kisses!" 

"Nay,  nay,"  Zues  replied,  rather  put  out  by  this, 
"do  not  talk  in  this  unbecoming  and  extravagant 
style!  What  is  entering  your  head,  you  overbold 
Dietrich?  Not  a  hundredfold  and  not  offering  kisses, 
but  only  threefold  and  in  a  virtuous  and  honorable 
manner,  so  that  no  wrong  may  be  done  me!" 

"Yes,"  now  cried  Jobst,  brandishing  a  pear  stalk 
and  gesturing  with  it,  "only  threefold  and  behaving 
with  the  greatest  chastity  do  I  see  the  beloved  Miss 
Buenzlin  walking  about  me  and  greeting  me  while 
placing  her  hand  on  her  heart.  Your  most  devoted 
servant,  thank  you,  thank  you!"  he  said,  smiling  with 
great  urbanity  and  bowing  thrice  in  different  directions 
as  though  he  really  perceived  these  hallucinations  in 
the  air  around  him.  "Thus  you  should  speak," 
rejoined  Zues,  with  a  seductive  smirk.  "If  there 
really  exists  any  difference  between  you  three,  it  is 
you,  after  all,  dear  Jobst,  who  are  the  most  gifted, 
or  at  least  the  most  sensible." 

Fridolin,  the  Bavarian,  had  not  yet  succeeded  in 
conjuring  up  in  his  slower  brain  all  these  figments  of 
imagination.  But  now  seeing  Jobst  evidently  scoring 
a  hit,  he  was  afraid  that  he  was  losing  in  favor,  and 


56  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

so  shouted  in  haste:  "I  also  notice  the  lovely  virgin, 
Miss  Zues  Buenzlin,  perambulating  right  here  in  my 
vicinity  and  throwing  voluptuous  glances  in  my 
direction,  while  putting  her  hand  on — " 

"Fie,  you  Bavarian,"  shrieked  Zues  wrathfully, 
turning  her  face  aside  out  of  very  shame.  "Not 
another  word!  Where  do  you  get  the  courage  from  to 
talk  to  me  in  such  a  tone  of  impure  grossness,  and  to 
allow  your  fancy  to  indulge  in  such  smuttiness?  Fie, 
fie!" 

The  poor  Bavarian  felt  abashed,  reddened  under 
this  reproof,  and  looked  about  foolishly,  not  knowing 
what  he  had  done  amiss.  For  really  his  imagination 
had  not  been  at  work  at  all,  and  he  had  merely  meant 
to  repeat  about  what  he  had  heard  Jobst  say  a  moment 
before  and  what  the  latter  had  been  praised  for. 
But  now  Zues  once  more  turned  and  remarked:  "And 
you,  dear  Dietrich,  have  you  not  yet  been  able  to 
reshape  that  last  observation  of  yours  in  a  more  modest 
guise?  " 

"Indeed  I  have,"  the  young  man  made  answer, 
glad  to  be  forgiven,  "I  now  perceive  you  only  in  three 
different  shapes,  regarding  me  pleasantly  but  in  a 
quite  respectable  manner,  and  offering  me  three 
white  hands,  on  which  I  imprint  three  just  as  re- 
spectable kisses." 

"Well,  then,  that  is  proper,"  remarked  Zues,  "and 
you,  Fridolin,  have  you  recovered  from  your  fit  of 
libertinism?    Have   you   not  yet   calmed   your   ram- 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    57 

pageous  blood,  and  are  you  now  in  condition  to  con- 
ceive of  an  image  not  so  obscene?" 

"Begging  pardon,"  murmured  Fridolin  greatly  crest- 
fallen, "I  also  can  now  clearly  recognize  three  maidens, 
each  of  whom  has  dried  pears  in  her  hand  and  offers 
them  to  me,  not  being  quite  at  variance  with  me  any 
longer.  One  of  these  is  as  handsome  as  the  others, 
and  to  make  a  choice  among  them  appears  to  me  a 
hard  matter  indeed." 

"Well  said,"  remarked  Zues,  "and  since  you  in 
your  fancy  are  surrounded  by  no  less  than  nine  equally 
desirable  persons,  and  nevertheless  in  spite  of  such 
delectable  superabundance  are  suffering  in  your  hearts 
from  a  lack  of  love,  you  may  easily  conceive  of  my 
own  condition.  And  as  you  also  saw  how  with  modest 
and  pure  heart  I  know  to  tame  my  desires,  I  trust  you 
will  take  me  as  a  model  and  will  vow  here  and  now 
to  further  live  in  amity  and  to  separate  when  the 
hour  comes  just  as  pleasantly  and  without  a  grudge, 
no  matter  how  fate  may  deal  with  each  one  of  you. 
Rise  and  come  hither.  Let  each  one  of  you  place  his 
hand  in  mine,  and  pledge  himself  to  act  just  as  I  have 
indicated!" 

"With  perfect  good  faith,"  said  Jobst  in  reply, 
"I  at  least  will  do  precisely  as  you  suggest!" 

And  the  other  two,  not  to  be  behindhand,  likewise 
shouted:  "And  so  will  I!"  and  they  all  three  pledged 
themselves  as  she  had  requested,  secretly,  of  course, 
each  with  the  proviso  to  run  as  hard  towards  the  goal 
as  he  was  able. 


58  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

"Yes,  indeed,"  Jobst  once  more  interjected,  "I 
at  least  will  live  up  to  my  promise,  for  from  my  youth 
upwards  I  have  unfailingly  shown  a  conciliatory 
and  equable  disposition.  Never  in  my  life  have  I 
had  a  quarrel  with  anyone,  and  would  never  suffer 
to  see  an  animal  tortured.  Wherever  I  have  been 
I  was  on  good  terms  with  my  fellows,  and  thus  earned 
much  praise  because  of  my  peaceful  ways.  And 
while  I  may  say  that  I,  too,  understand  many  things 
passably  well,  and  am  usually  held  a  sensible  young 
man,  at  no  time  have  I  interfered  with  things  that  did 
not  concern  me,  and  have  always  done  my  duty 
with  consideration  for  others.  I  can  work  just  as 
hard  as  I  choose  without  losing  my  health,  since  I 
am  sound  and  strong  and  abstemious  in  my  ways, 
and  have  still  the  best  years  before  me.  All  the 
wives  of  my  masters  have  said  that  I  was  a  man  in 
a  thousand,  a  real  treasure,  and  that  it  was  easy  to 
get  along  with  me.  Oh,  indeed,  Miss  Buenzlin,  I 
beHeve  I  could  live  with  you  as  though  in  Heaven,  in 
uninterrupted  bliss." 

"That  would  not  be  hard,"  broke  in  the  Bavarian 
at  this,  "to  live  in  concord  and  happiness  with  Miss 
Zues.  I  also  would  undertake  to  do  the  same.  I  am 
not  a  fool,  either.  My  craft  I  understand  as  well  as 
the  best,  and  I  know  how  to  keep  things  in  order 
without  ever  having  to  get  excited  about  it.  And 
although  I  also  have  dwelt  in  the  largest  cities  and  have 
earned  good  wages  there,  I  have  never  got  into  trouble, 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    59 

and  neither  have  I  ever  killed  as  much  as  a  spider  or 
thrown  a  brick  at  a  mewling  cat.  I  am  temperate 
and  easily  pleased  with  my  food,  and  am  able  to  get 
along  with  very  little  indeed.  With  that  I  am  in 
full  health  and  of  good  temper  and  cheerful.  I  can 
stand  much  hardship  without  losing  my  bland  mind, 
and  my  good  conscience  is  an  elixir  that  keeps  me  in 
excellent  spirit.  All  animals  love  me  and  follow  me, 
because  they  scent  my  kind  heart,  for  with  an  unjust 
man  they  would  not  stay.  A  poodle  dog  once  fol- 
lowed me  for  three  entire  days,  on  leaving  the  town  of 
Ulm,  and  at  last  I  was  forced  to  leave  it  in  charge 
of  a  peasant,  since  I  as  an  humble  journeyman  comb- 
maker  could  not  afford  to  feed  such  a  creature.  When 
I  was  traveling  through  the  Bohemian  Forest  stags 
and  deer  used  to  come  within  twenty  paces  of  me, 
and  would  then  stand  and  watch  me.  It  is  wonderful 
indeed  how  even  such  wild  beasts  know  by  instinct 
what  kind  of  human  beings  they  have  to  deal  with." 

"True,"  here  sang  out  the  Suabian.  "Don't  you 
see  how  this  chaffinch  has  been  fluttering  around  me 
this  whole  while,  and  how  it  is  anxious  to  approach 
me?  And  that  squirrel  over  there  by  the  pine  tree 
is  constantly  glancing  towards  me,  and  here  again 
a  small  beetle  is  creeping  up  my  leg  and  will  not  go 
away.  Surely,  it  must  be  feeling  comfortable  with 
me,  the  tiny  thing." 

But  now  Zues  grew  jealous.  Rather  nettled,  she 
spoke:    "Animals  all  love  me  and  like  to  stay  with 


6o  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

me.  One  of  my  birds  remained  with  me  for  eight 
years,  until  unfortunately  it  died.  Our  cat  is  so  fond 
of  me  that  it  forever  purrs  about  me,  and  our  neigh- 
bor's pigeons  crowd  about  me  every  day  when  I  scatter 
some  crumbs  for  them  on  my  window  sill.  Wonderful 
qualities  animals  have,  anyway,  each  after  its  kind. 
The  lion  loves  to  follow  in  the  footprints  of  kings  and 
heroes,  and  the  elephant  accompanies  the  prince  and 
the  doughty  warrior.  The  camel  bears  the  merchant 
through  the  desert  and  keeps  a  store  of  fresh  water 
in  its  belly  for  him.  The  dog  again  shares  all  the 
dangers  with  his  owner  and  pitches  himself  headlong 
into  the  sea  just  to  prove  his  devotion.  The  dolphin 
has  a  strong  love  for  music  and  swims  in  the  wake  of 
vessels,  while  the  eagle  accompanies  armies.  The 
ape  bears  a  strong  resemblance  to  the  human  species 
and  imitates  everything  he  sees  us  do.  The  parrot 
understands  our  speech  and  converses  with  us  just 
like  any  person  of  sense.  Even  the  snakes  may  be 
tamed  and  then  dance  on  the  tip  of  their  tails.  The 
crocodile  sheds  human  tears  and  is  consequently  in 
those  parts  esteemed  and  spared.  The  ostrich  may 
be  saddled  and  ridden  like  a  horse.  The  savage 
buffalo  pulls  the  carriage  of  his  human  master,  as 
the  reindeer  does  the  sledge  of  his.  The  unicorn 
furnishes  man  with  snow-white  ivory  and  the  tor- 
toise with  its  transparent  bones — " 

"Beg    pardon,"    interrupted    all    the    three    comb- 
makers  together,   "herein  you  are  slightly  in  error. 


THE  THREE   DECENT  COMBMAKERS    6i 

for  ivory  comes  from  the  teeth  of  the  elephant,  and 
tortoise-shell  combs  are  made  out  of  the  shell  of  that 
animal  and  not  of  the  bones  of  the  tortoise." 

Zues  colored  deeply  and  rejoined:  "That,  I  believe, 
remains  to  be  proved.  For  you  certainly  have  not 
seen  of  your  own  knowledge  whence  it  is  obtained, 
but  only  work  up  its  pieces.  I  as  a  rule  make  no 
mistakes  in  matters  of  that  kind.  However,  be  that 
as  it  may,  just  let  me  finish.  Not  the  animals  alone 
have  their  peculiarities  implanted  by  the  hand  of  God, 
but  even  dead  minerals  that  are  dug  out  of  the  sides 
of  mountains.  The  crystal  is  clear  as  glass,  marble 
hard  and  full  of  veins,  sometimes  white  and  sometimes 
black.  Amber  possesses  electric  properties  and  at- 
tracts lightning;  but  in  that  case  it  burns  and  smells 
like  incense.  The  magnet  attracts  iron;  on  slates 
one  can  write,  but  not  upon  diamonds,  for  these  are 
hard  as  steel;  the  glazier,  too,  uses  the  diamond 
for  cutting  glass,  because  it  is  small  and  pointed. 
You  see,  dear  friends,  that  I  can  also  tell  you  a  few 
things  about  minerals  and  animals.  But  as  regards 
my  relations  with  them  I  may  say  this:  that  the  cat 
is  a  sly  and  cunning  beast,  and  that  is  why  it  will 
attach  itself  only  to  persons  possessing  the  same  char- 
acteristics. The  pigeon,  however,  is  the  symbol  of 
innocence  and  simplicity  of  mind,  and  may  only  be 
the  companion  of  those  similarly  constituted.  And 
since  it  is  certain  that  both  cats  and  pigeons  are  at- 
tracted by  me,  the  conclusion  must  be  that  I  am  at 


62  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

the  same  time  sly  and  cunning,  simple-minded  and 
innocent.  As  Holy  Writ  says,  Be  wise  like  the  ser- 
pent and  simple  like  the  dove!  In  this  way  we  are  able 
to  understand  both  animals  and  our  relations  to  them, 
and  to  learn  a  deal,  if  we  only  look  at  things  in  the 
right  manner." 

The  poor  combmakers  had  not  dared  to  interrupt 
her  more.  Zues  had  got  the  better  of  them,  and  she 
went  on  for  some  time  longer  at  the  same  rate,  talking 
about  all  sorts  of  intellectual  things,  until  their  senses 
were  in  a  whirl.  But  they  admired  Zues'  spirit 
and  her  eloquence,  although  with  all  their  admiration 
none  of  them  deemed  himself  too  humble  to  possess 
this  jewel  of  a  woman,  especially  as  this  ornament  of 
a  house  cam/"  cheap  and  consisted  merely  in  an  eager 
and  tireless  tongue.  Whether  they  themselves,  after 
all,  were  worthy  of  this  that  they  valued  so  highly, 
and  whether  they  would  be  able  to  utilize  this  gift  of 
hers,  that  class  of  idiot  seldom  inquires.  They  are 
more  like  children  who  reach  out  for  anything  that 
glitters,  who  lick  off  the  vivid  paint  on  a  multicolored 
toy,  and  who  put  a  mouth  harmonica  into  their 
little  jaw  instead  of  being  content  with  listening  to 
its  music.  But  while  drinking  in  the  high-flown 
phrases  that  dropped  so  mellifluously  from  her  lips, 
the  three  of  them  goaded  on  their  imagination  more 
and  more,  sharpened  their  greed  to  own  such  a  dis- 
tinguished person,  and  the  more  heartless,  idle  and 
parrot-like  Zues'  chatter  became,  the  more  melancholy 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    63 

and  depressed  became  her  swains.  At  the  same  time 
they  felt  a  terrific  thirst  in  consequence  of  having 
swallowed  so  much  of  this  dried  fruit.  Jobst  and  the 
Bavarian  looked  for  and  found  in  the  near-by  woods 
a  spring,  and  filled  their  stomachs  with  cold  water. 
But  the  Suabian  had  slyly  taken  along  a  flask  of  cherry 
brandy  and  water,  and  with  this  he  now  refreshed 
himself.  His  plan  had  been  to  thus  gain  an  advantage 
over  the  others  when  making  the  race,  for  well  he  knew 
that  the  other  two  were  too  parsimonious  to  bring 
along  a  stimulant  Hke  that  or  to  turn  in  at  a  tavern 
on  the  way. 

This  flask  he  now  pulled  out  of  his  pocket,  and 
while  the  others  drank  their  water  he  offered  it  to 
Zues.  She  accepted  it,  emptied  the  flask  half,  and 
regarded  Dietrich  while  she  thanked  him  for  the 
refreshment  with  such  an  affectionate  glance  that 
Dietrich  felt  more  than  recompensed  and  tremen- 
dously encouraged  in  his  suit.  He  could  not  with- 
stand the  temptation  to  seize  her  hand  courteously 
and  to  kiss  the  tips  of  her  fingers.  She  on  her  part 
lightly  touched  his  lips  with  her  hand,  and  he  made 
belief  of  snapping  at  it,  whereupon  she  smirked  falsely 
and^  pleasantly  at  him.  Dietrich  answered  similarly. 
Then  the  two  sat  down  on  the  ground  close  to  each 
other,  and  once  in  a  while  would  touch  the  soles  of  the 
other's  shoe  with  his  own,  almost  as  though  they 
were  shaking  hands  with  their  feet.  Zues  was  bend- 
ing over  slightly,  and  laid  her  hand  on  his  shoulder, 


64  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

while  Dietrich  was  on  the  very  point  of  imitating  this 
little  sport  when  the  Bavarian  and  the  Saxon  returned 
jointly,  observed  this  philandering,  and  groaned  and 
lost  color  both  at  the  same  time. 

From  the  water  they  had  drunk  on  top  of  all  this 
dried  fruit  they  had  become  uneasy,  both  of  them, 
and  now  that  they  saw  the  playful  pair  indulging 
in  their  little  game,  everything  seemed  to  turn  around 
them.  Cold  sweat  began  to  break  out  on  their  fore- 
heads, and  they  nearly  gave  themselves  up  for  lost. 
Zues,  however,  did  not  for  an  instant  lose  her  self- 
possession,  but  turned  to  the  two  and  said:  "Come, 
friends,  sit  down  a  little  while  longer  here  with  me, 
so  that  we  may  enjoy,  perhaps  for  the  last  time,  our 
harmony  and  our  undisturbed  friendship." 

Jobst  and  Fridolin  pressed  up  quickly,  and  sat 
down,  stretching  out  their  thin  legs.  Zues  left  her 
one  hand  in  the  Suabian's  own,  gave  Jobst  her  other 
one,  and  touched  with  the  soles  of  her  shoes  those  of 
Fridolin,  while  she  turned  her  face  to  one  after  the 
other,  smiling  most  enchantingly.  Thus  there  are 
skilled  virtuosi  who  know  how  to  play  a  number  of 
instruments  at  once,  who  shake  bells  with  their  heads, 
blow  the  Pan's  pipe  with  their  mouths,  touch  the 
guitar  with  their  hands,  strike  the  cymbal  with  their 
knees,  with  the  foot  a  triangle,  and  with  the  elbow  a 
drum  suspended  from  their  backs. 

But  now  she  rose,  smoothed  out  her  dress  very 
carefully,  and  said:  "The  hour  has  now  come,  I  think, 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    65 

my  friends,  when  you  must  get  ready  for  your  great 
race,  the  race  which  your  master  in  his  folly  has  im- 
posed on  you,  but  which  we  ourselves  have  agreed  to 
regard  as  the  disposition  of  a  higher  power.  Run  this 
race  with  all  the  energy  you  can  muster,  but  without 
enmity  or  rancor,  and  leave  the  crown  of  the  victor 
willingly  to  him  who  has  earned  it." 

And  as  if  stung  by  a  vicious  wasp  the  three  sprang 
up  and  stood  up  ready  and  eager  on  their  legs.  Thus 
they  stood,  and  they  were  now  to  try  and  vanquish 
each  other  with  the  same  legs  with  which  until  now 
they  had  made  only  slow  and  thoughtful  steps.  Not 
one  of  the  three  could  even  recall  ever  having  used 
these  legs  jumping  or  running.  The  Suabian,  perhaps, 
was  most  inclined  for  the  venture.  He  even  seemed 
to  be  impatient  for  the  struggle,  and  an  eager  look  was 
in  his  eyes.  At  that  moment  of  severe  crisis  they 
three  scanned  each  other's  features  closely;  the 
sweat  had  gathered  on  their  pale  brows,  and  they 
breathed  hard  and  spasmodically,  as  though  they 
were  already  running  at  full  tilt. 

J  "Shake  hands  once  more,  in  token  of  good  feeling," 
said  Zues.  And  they  did  so,  but  in  so  lifeless  a  man- 
ner that  the  three  hands  dropped  to  their  sides  as  if 
made  of  lead. 

"And  are  we  really  to  start  on  this  fool's  errand?" 
asked  Jobst  in  a  voice  thick  with  suppressed  emotion, 
while  wiping  the  perspiration  from  his  forehead. 
Some  single  tears  were  slowly  crawling  down  his 
hollow  cheeks. 


66  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

"Yes,  indeed,"  chimed  in  the  Bavarian,  "are  we 
actually  to  run  and  jump  like  apes  on  a  rope?"  and 
began  to  weep  in  good  earnest. 

"And  you,  most  charming  Miss  Buenzlin,"  added 
Jobst,  "how  are  you  going  to  behave  in  the  circum- 
stances? " 

"It  behoves  me,"  answered  she  and  held  her  hand- 
kerchief to  her  eyes,  "to  keep  silent,  to  sniffer  and  to 
look  on." 

"But  afterwards,"  put  in  the  Suabian,  with  a  sly 
smile,  "afterwards.  Miss  Zues,  when  all  is  over?" 

"Oh,  Dietrich,"  she  responded  softly,  "do  you 
not  know  what  the  poet  says:  'As  Fate  decides,  so 
turns  the  heart  of  maid  7"  And  in  introducing  this 
quotation  from  Schiller  she  regarded  him  so  temptingly 
aside  that  he  again  lifted  up  his  long  legs  and  shuffled 
them,  feeling  like  starting  off  at  once. 

While  the  two  rivals  arranged  their  little  vehicles 
on  their  wheels,  and  Dietrich  did  the  same,  she  re- 
peatedly touched  him  with  her  elbow,  or  else  stepped 
on  his  foot.  She  also  wiped  the  dust  from  his  hat, 
but  at  the  same  time  threw  inviting  glances  towards 
the  others,  pretending  to  be  highly  amused  at  the 
Suabian's  eagerness.  But  she  did  this  without  being 
observed  by  Dietrich. 

And  now  all  three  of  them  drew  deep  breaths  and 
sighed  like  so  many  furnaces.  They  looked  all  about 
them,  took  off  their  hats,  fanned  themselves  and  then 
once  more  put  on  their  hats.    For  the  last  time  they 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    67 

sniffed  the  air  in  all  the  directions  of  the  compass,  and 
tried  to  recover  their  breath.  Zues  herself  felt  deeply 
for  them,  and  for  very  compassion  shed  sundry  tears. 

"Here,"  she  then  said,  "are  the  last  three  prunes. 
Take  each  of  you  one  in  the  mouth,  that  will  refresh 
you.  And  now  depart,  and  turn  the  folly  of  the  wicked 
into  the  wisdom  of  the  just!  That  which  the  wicked 
have  invented  for  your  confusion,  now  change  into 
a  work  of  self-denial  and  of  serious  enterprise,  into 
the  well-considered  final  act  of  good  conduct  main- 
tained for  years,  and  into  a  competitive  race  for 
virtue  itself." 

And  she  herself  with  her  own  fair  hands  shoved 
a  dried  prune  between  the  cramped  Ups  of  each,  and 
each  of  them  at  once  began  to  gently  chew  the  prune. 

Jobst  pressed  his  hand  upon  his  stomach,  exclaim- 
ing: "What  must  be,  must  be.  Let  us  start,  in  the 
name  of  Heaven!" 

And  saying  which  and  raising  his  staff,  he  began  to 
stride  ahead,  knees  strongly  bent  and  nostrils  high  in 
air,  dragging  his  little  load  after  him.  Scarcely  had 
Fridolin  seen  that,  when  he,  too,  did  the  same,  taking 
long  steps,  and  without  once  looking  behind  him. 
Both  of  them  could  now  be  seen  descending  the  hill 
and  entering  the  dusty  highway. 

The  Suabian  was  the  last  one  to  get  away,  and  he 
was  walking,  without  showing  any  great  hurry,  with 
Zues  at  his  side,  grinning  in  a  self-satisfied  way,  as 
though  he  felt  sure  of  victory,  and  as  though  he  were 


6S  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

willing,  out  of  mere  generosity,  to  grant  a  little  start 
to  his  rivals,  while  Zues  praised  him  for  this  supposed 
noble  action  and  for  his  equanimity. 

"Ah,"  she  now  sighed,  "after  all,  it  is  a  blessing 
to  be  sure  of  a  firm  support  in  life!  Even  where  one 
is  sufficiently  gifted  oneself  with  insight  and  clever- 
ness and  follows,  besides,  the  path  of  rectitude,  all 
the  same  it  makes  it  much  easier  to  walk  through 
life  on  the  arm  of  a  tried  friend.'^ 

"Quite  right,"  the  Suabian  hastened  to  reply,  and 
nudged  her  energetically  with  the  elbow,  while  at  the 
same  time  he  watched  his  rivals  so  as  not  to  let  their 
start  become  too  great.  "Do  you  at  last  notice  that, 
my  dear  Miss  Zues?  Are  you  becoming  convinced? 
Have  your  eyes  opened  to  the  truth?" 

"Oh,  Dietrich,  my  dear  Dietrich,"  and  she  sighed 
more  strongly,  "I  often  feel  so  very  lonesome." 

"Hop-hop,"  he  now  laughed  light-heartedly,  "that 
is  where  the  shoe  pinches?  I  thought  so  all  along," 
and  his  heart  began  to  leap  like  a  hare  in  a  cabbage 
patch. 

"Oh,  Dietrich,"  she  again  breathed  low,  and  she 
pressed  herself  much  tighter  against  the  young  man's 
side.  He  felt  awkward,  and  the  heart  in  his  bosom 
grew  big  with  pleasure,  and  joy  began  to  fill  it  alto- 
gether. But  at  the  same  instant  he  made  the  discovery 
that  his  precursors  had  already  vanished  from  his 
sight,  they  having  turned  a  corner.  At  once  he  wanted 
to  tear  himself  loose  from  Zues'  arm  and  hasten  after 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    69 

them.  But  Zues  kept  such  a  tight  hold  of  him  that 
he  was  unable  to  do  so,  and  she  grasped  him  so  firmly 
that  he  thought  she  was  going  to  faint. 

"Dietrich,"  she  whispered,  and  she  made  sheep's 
eyes  at  him,  "don't  leave  me  alone  at  this  moment. 
I  rely  on  you,  you  are  my  sole  help!  Please  support 
me. 

"The  devil.  Miss  Zues,"  he  murmured  anxiously, 
"let  me  go,  let  me  go,  or  else  I  shall  miss  this  race, 
and  then  good-by  to  everything!" 

"No,  no,  you  must  not  leave  me  just  now.  I  feel 
that  I  am  becoming  very  ill!"     Thus  she  lamented. 

"I  don't  care,  ill  or  not  ill,"  he  cried,  and  tore 
himself  loose  from  her.  He  quickly  climbed  a  rock 
whence  he  was  able  to  overlook  the  whole  highroad 
below.  There  they  were,  he  saw  the  two  runners 
far  away,  deep  below  towards  the  town.  And  then 
he  made  up  his  mind  to  a  great  spurt,  but  at  the  same 
moment  once  more  looked  back  for  Zues.  Then  he 
saw  her,  seated  at  the  entrance  to  a  shady  wood  path, 
and  motioning  to  him  with  her  lily  hand.  This  was 
too  much  for  him.  Instead  of  hurrying  down  the 
hill,  he  hastened  back  to  her.  And  when  she  saw  him 
coming,  she  turned  and  went  in  deeper  into  the  cool 
wood,  all  the  time  casting  inviting  glances  at  him, 
for  her  object  was,  of  course,  to  draw  him  away  from 
the  race  and  cheat  him  out  of  his  victory,  make  him 
lose  and  thus  render  bis  further  stay  in  Seldwyla 
impossible. 


70  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

But  Dietrich,  the  Suabian,  was,  as  pointed  out 
before,  of  an  inventive  and  resourceful  turn.  Thus 
it  was  that  he,  too,  quickly  made  up  his  mind  to  alter 
his  tactics,  and  to  score  victory  not  down  there  but 
up  here.  And  thus  things  came  to  pass  very  much 
differently  from  what  had  been  calculated  on.  For  as 
soon  as  he  had  come  up  with  her  in  a  sheltered  spot 
in  the  depth  of  the  forest,  he  fell  at  her  feet  and  over- 
whelmed her  with  the  most  ardent  declarations  of 
his  love  for  her  to  which  any  combmaker  ever  gave 
expression.  At  first  she  made  a  great  attempt  to 
withstand  his  wooing,  bade  him  be  quiet  and  desist 
from  his  violent  protestations,  and  to  befool  him  a 
little  while  longer  until  all  danger  of  his  winning  should 
be  past.  She  let  loose  the  torrent  of  her  wisdom  and 
learning,  and  tried  to  awe  him.  But  the  young 
Suabian  was  not  to  be  caught  with  this  chaff.  Paying 
not  the  slightest  regard  to  all  these  rhetorical  fire- 
works, he  let  loose  Heaven  and  Hell  in  his  stormy 
suit,  lavishing  caresses  and  blandishments  on  the 
surprised  maiden  by  which  he  finally  stifled  the  voice 
of  her  severely  attuned  conscience,  and  his  excited 
and  ready  wit  furnished  him  with  enough  of  love's 
ammunition  to  overcome  all  her  scruples.  His  elo- 
quence and  his  bold  and  ever  persistent  wheedling 
and  dandling  gave  her  not  a  second's  respite  nor  leisure 
to  reflect  and  deliberate.  He  first  took  possession 
of  her  hands  and  feet,  to  kiss  and  fondle  them,  despite 
her  strenuous  protests,  and  next  he  flattered  her  to 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    71 

the  top  of  her  bent,  lauding  both  her  bodily  and  mental 
charms  to  the  very  skies,  until  Zues  was  in  a  very  para- 
dise of  self-glorification  and  satisfied  vanity.  Added 
to  this  was  the  solitude  and  the  sense  of  security 
from  curious  and  peering  eyes  in  the  leafy  shade 
of  the  forest.  Until  at  last  Zues  really  lost  the  com- 
pass to  which  hitherto  she  had  clung  as  her  safe 
though  rather  selfish  guide  through  life.  She  suc- 
cumbed to  all  these  allurements,  not  so  much  by 
reason  of  exalted  sensualism,  as  because  for  the 
moment  she  was  overcome  and  helpless  against  the 
stronger  and  more  primitive  passion  of  this  young 
man.  Her  heart  fluttered  timidly  up  and  down,  and 
vainly  attempted  to  find  its  former  balance.  Her 
thoughts  were  in  a  perfect  storm  of  contradictions, 
and  she  was  altogether  like  a  poor  impotent  beetle 
turned  over  on  its  back  and  struggling  to  recover  the 
use  of  its  limbs.  And  thus  it  was  that  Dietrich  van- 
quished her  in  every  sense.  She  had  tempted  him 
into  this  impenetrable  thicket  in  order  to  betray  him 
like  another  Delilah,  but  had  been  quickly  conquered 
by  this  despised  Suabian.  And  this  was  not  because 
she  was  so  utterly  love-sick  as  to  lose  her  bearings  but 
rather  because  she  was  in  spite  of  all  her  fancied  wis- 
dom so  short  of  vision  as  not  to  see  beyond  the  tip 
of  her  own  nose.  Thus  they  remained  together  an 
hour  or  more  in  this  delectable  solitude,  embraced 
ever  anew,  kissed  one  another  a  thousand  times, 
thus  realizing   the   vision   of   the   Suabian   not  long 


72  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

before,  and  swore  eternal  faith  and  unending  affection, 
and  agreed  most  solemnly,  no  matter  how  the  affair 
of  the  race  should  terminate,  to  marry  and  become 
man  and  wife. 

In  the  meanwhile  news  of  the  curious  undertaking 
of  the  three  combmakers  had  spread  throughout  the 
town,  and  the  master  himself  had  not  a  Httle  aided  in 
this,  for  the  whole  matter  appealed  strongly  to  his 
sense  of  humor.  And  hence  all  the  people  of  Seldwyla 
rejoiced  in  advance  at  the  prospect  of  a  spectacle  so 
novel  and  unconventional.  They  were  eager  to  see 
the  three  journeymen  arrive  out  of  breath  and  in 
complete  disarray,  and  laughed  heartily  in  antici- 
pation of  the  fun  they  counted  on.  Gradually  a 
vast  throng  had  assembled  outside  the  town  gate, 
impatient  to  see  the  arrival.  On  both  sides  of  the 
highroad  the  curious  people  were  seated  at  the  edge 
of  the  trenches,  just  as  if  professional  runners  were 
expected.  The  small  boys  climbed  into  the  tops  of 
trees,  while  their  elders  sat  on  the  grass  and  smoked 
their  pipe,  quite  content  that  such  an  amusement  had 
been  provided  for  them.  Even  the  dignitaries  of 
Seldwyla  had  not  scorned  to  put  in  their  appearance, 
sat  in  the  taverns  by  the  wayside  and  discoursed  of 
the  chances  of  each  of  the  three,  and  making  a  number 
of  not  inconsiderable  wagers  as  to  the  final  result. 
In  those  streets  which  the  runners  had  to  pass  on  their 
way  to  the  goal  all  the  windows  had  been  thrown  open, 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    73 

the  wives  had  placed  in  their  parlors  on  the  window 
ledges  pretty  vari-colored  cushions,  to  rest  their  arms 
upon,  and  had  received  numerous  visits  from  the 
ladies  of  their  acquaintance,  so  that  coffee  and  cake 
was  hospitably  provided  for  them  all,  and  even  the 
maid  servants  were  in  a  holiday  mood,  being  sent  to 
bakers  and  confectioners  for  goodies  of  every  descrip- 
tion with  which  to  entertain  the  guests. 

All  of  a  sudden  the  little  fellows  keenly  watching 
from  out  of  their  leafy  domes  dimly  saw  in  the  dis- 
tance tiny  dust  clouds  approaching,  and  they  set  up 
the  cry:  "Here  they're  coming!  They're  coming!" 
And  indeed,  not  long  thereafter  were  seen  Jobst  and 
Fridolin  rushing  past,  each  wrapped  in  his  own  hazy 
column  of  dust,  in  the  middle  of  the  road.  With  the 
one  hand  they  were  pulling  their  valises  on  wheels  each 
by  himself,  these  rattling  over  the  cobblestones  with 
a  noise  like  drumbeats,  and  with  the  other  they  held 
on  tight  to  their  heavy  hats,  these  having  slid  down 
their  necks,  and  their  long  dusters  and  coats  were 
flying  in  the  breeze.  Both  of  the  rivals  were  covered 
thickly  with  dust,  almost  unrecognizable;  they  had 
their  mouths  wide  open  and  were  yapping  for  breath; 
they  saw  and  heard  nothing  that  transpired  around 
them,  and  thick  tears  were  slowly  rolling  down  their 
fac^s,  there  being  no  time  to  wipe  them  away,  and 
these  tears  had  dug  paths  in  criss-cross  fashion  in  the 
grine  on  their  countenances. 

'  c'hey  came  close  upon  each  other,  but  the  Bavarian 


74  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

was  just  about  half  a  horse's  length  ahead.  A  terrific 
shouting  and  laughter  was  set  up  by  the  audience, 
and  this  droned  in  the  ears  of  the  racers  as  they  sped 
on  in  insane  haste.  Everybody  got  up  and  crowded 
along  the  sidewalk,  and  there  were  cries  raised:  "That's 
it,  that's  it!  Run,  Saxon,  defend  yourself:  don't 
let  the  Bavarian  have  it  all  his  own  way!  One  of 
the  three  has  already  given  in — there  are  but  two 
of  them  left." 

The  gentlemen  who  were  standing  on  the  tables 
and  chairs  in  the  gardens  and  roadhouses  laughed 
fit  to  split  their  sides.  Their  roars  sounded  across 
the  highway  and  streets,  and  woke  the  echoes,  and 
the  affair  was  turned  into  a  popular  festival.  Small 
boys  and  the  entire  rabble  of  the  town  followed  densely 
in  the  wake  of  the  two,  and  this  mob  stirred  up  thick 
volumes  of  biting  dust,  so  that  the  racers  were  almost 
stifled  before  they  arrived  at  the  near  goal.  The 
whole  immense  cloud  rolled  towards  the  town  gate, 
and  even  women  and  girls  ran  along,  and  mingled 
their  high,  squeaking  voices  with  those  of  the  male 
ruffians.  Now  they  had  almost  reached  the  old  town 
gate,  the  two  towers  of  which  were  lined  with  the 
curious  who  were  waving  their  caps  and  hats.  The 
two  were  still  running,  foaming  at  the  mouth,  eyes 
starting  out  of  sockets,  running  like  two  run-away 
horses,  without  sense  or  mind,  their  hearts  full  of  f^ar 
and  torture.  Suddenly  one  of  the  httle  street  b<  ys 
knelt  down  on  Jobst's  small  vehicle,  and  had  J(  'st 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    75 

pull  him  along,  the  crowd  howling  with  appreciation 
of  the  joke.  Jobst  turned  and  pleaded  with  the 
youngster  to  get  off,  even  struck  at  him  with  his  staff. 
But  the  blows  did  not  reach  the  urchin,  who  merely- 
grinned  at  him.  With  that  Fridolin  gained  on  Jobst, 
and  as  Jobst  noticed  this,  he  threw  his  staff  between 
the  other's  feet,  so  that  Fridolin  stumbled  and  fell. 
But  as  Jobst  attempted  to  pass  him,  the  Bavarian 
pulled  him  by  the  tail  of  his  coat,  and  by  the  aid  of 
that  got  again  on  his  feet.  Jobst  struck  him  upon 
his  hands  like  a  maniac,  and  shouted:  "Let  go!  Let 
go  1  '*  But  Fridolin  did  not  let  go,  and  so  Jobst  seized 
him  also  by  the  coat  tail,  and  thus  both  had  hold  of 
each  other,  and  were  slowly  making  their  way  into  the 
gateway,  once  in  a  while  attempting  to  get  rid  of  the 
other  by  venturing  on  a  bound.  They  wept,  sobbed 
and  howled  like  babies,  shouted  in  the  agony  of  their 
grief  and  fear:  "My  God,  let  go!"  "For  the  love 
of  Heaven,  let  go!''  "Let  go,  you  devil;  you  must 
let  go!"  Between  whiles  each  struck  hard  blows  at 
the  other's  hands,  but  with  all  that  they  advanced  a 
little  all  the  time.  Their  hats  and  staffs  had  been  lost 
in  the  scuffle,  and  ahead  of  them  and  behind  them  the 
hooting  mob  was  accompanying  them,  their  escort  grow- 
ing more  turbulent  and  violent  each  minute.  All  the 
windows  were  occupied  by  the  ladies  of  Seldwyla,  and 
they  threw,  so  to  speak,  their  silvery  laughter  into  this 
avalanche  of  noise,  and  all  were  agreed  that  for  years 
past  there  had  not  been  such  a-  ludicrous  scene  as  this. 


76  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  this  crazy  free  show  was  so 
much  to  the  taste  of  the  whole  town  that  nobody  took 
the  trouble  to  point  out  to  the  two  rivals  their  ultimate 
goal,  the  house  of  their  old  master.  They  themselves, 
these  two,  did  not  see  it.  Indeed,  they  did  not  see 
anything  more.  They  reached  their  goal  and  did 
not  perceive  it,  but  went  past  and  hurried  crazily 
on,  on  and  on,  always  escorted  by  the  shouts  and 
yells  of  the  mob,  fighting  each  other,  their  faces  drawn 
and  pinched  as  though  in  death,  on  and  on,  until  they 
reached  the  other  end  of  the  little  town  and  so  through 
the  second  gate  out  into  the  open  once  more.  The 
master  himself  had  stood  at  the  window  of  his  house, 
laughing  and  greatly  amused,  and  after  patiently 
waiting  for  another  hour  for  the  victor  in  the  strange 
tournament,  he  had  been  on  the  point  of  leaving  the 
house  and  joining  some  of  his  cronies  at  the  tavern, 
when  Zues  and  Dietrich  quietly  and  unobtrusively 
entered. 

For  Zues  had  meanwhile  been  busy  with  her 
thoughts,  combining,  after  her  wont,  this  and  that. 
And  thus  she  had  reached  the  conclusion  that  in  all 
likelihood  the  master  combmaker  would  be  willing 
to  sell  his  business  outright  on  a  cash  basis,  since  he 
could  not  continue  it  himself  much  longer.  For 
that  purpose  Zues  herself  was  ready  to  give  up  her 
interest-bearing  mortgage,  which  together  with  the 
slender  savings  of  Dietrich  would  doubtless  suffice 
and  thus  they  two  would  remain  victors  and  could 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    77 

laugh  at  the  other  two.  This  plan,  together  with 
their  intention  to  marry,  they  told  the  astonished 
master  about,  and  he,  readily  seeing  that  thus  he 
could  cheat  his  creditors  and  by  concluding  the  bar- 
gain quickly  would  also  get  possession  of  a  considerable 
sum  of  money  to  do  with  as  he  pleased,  was  glad  of 
the  opportunity  thus  afforded  him.  Quickly,  there- 
fore, the  two  parties  were  in  agreement  as  to  the 
terms,  and  before  the  sun  went  down  Zues  became 
the  lawful  owner  of  the  business  and  her  promised 
husband  the  tenant  of  the  house  in  which  the  business 
was  being  conducted.  Thus  it  was  Zues,  without 
indeed  having  intended  or  suspected  it  in  the  morning, 
who  was  tied  down  and  conquered  by  the  quick- 
witted Suabian. 

Half  dead  with  shame,  exhaustion  and  anger, 
Jobst  and  Fridolin  meanwhile  lay  in  the  inn  to  which 
they  had  been  taken  when  picked  up  limp  and  spent 
in  the  open  field.  To  separate  the  two  rivals,  thirsting 
for  each  other's  blood  and  maddened  from  the  whole 
crazy  adventure,  had  been  no  light  task.  The  whole 
of  Seldwyla  now,  having  in  their  peculiar  reckless 
way  already  forgotten  the  immediate  cause  of  the 
whole  turmoil,  was  now  celebrating  and  making  a 
night  of  it.  In  many  houses  there  was  dancing, 
and  in  the  taverns  there  was  much  drinking  and 
singing  and  noise,  just  as  on  the  greatest  Seldwyla 
holidays.  For  the  people  of  Seldwyla  never  required 
much  urging  to  enjoy  themselves  to  the  top  of  their 


78  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

bent.  When  the  two  poor  devils  saw  how  their  own 
superior  cunning  with  which  they  had  counted  on 
making  a  good  haul  had,  on  the  contrary,  only  served 
these  careless  people  in  all  their  folly  to  make  a  feast 
of  it,  how  they  themselves  had  been  the  immeidate 
cause  of  their  own  downfall,  and  had  made  a  laughing- 
stock of  themselves  for  all  the  world,  they  thought 
their  hearts  would  break.  For  they  had  managed 
not  only  to  defeat  the  wise  and  patient  plans  of  so 
many  years,  but  had  also  lost  forever  the  reputation 
of  being  shrewd  men  themselves. 

Jobst  as  the  oldest  of  the  three  and  having  spent  in 
Seldwyla  full  seven  years,  was  wholly  overwhelmed 
and  dazed  by  the  collapse  of  all  his  secret  hopes,  and 
quite  unable  to  reconstruct  a  new  world  after  having 
lost  the  one  of  his  dreams.  Utterly  dejected  he 
left  his  sleepless  pillow  before  daybreak,  wandered 
away  from  town  and  crept  to  the  very  spot  where  the 
day  before  they  and  Zues  had  sat  under  the  linden 
tree,  and  there  he  hanged  himself  to  one  of  the  lowest 
branches.  When  the  Bavarian,  but  an  hour  later, 
passed  there  on  his  way  into  strange  parts,  such  a 
fit  of  fright  seized  him  that  he  ran  off  like  a  lunatic, 
altered  completely  his  whole  ways,  and  later  on  was 
heard  to  have  become  a  dissolute  spendthrift,  who 
never  saved  a  penny,  and  who  was  in  the  habit  of 
cursing  God  and  men,  being  no  one's  friend  any  more. 

Dietrich  the  Suabian  alone  remained  one  of  the 
Decent  and  Just,  and  stayed  on  in  the  Httle  town. 


THE  THREE  DECENT  COMBMAKERS    79 

But  he  had  Httle  good  of  it,  for  Zues  left  him  nothing 
to  say,  and  ruled  him  strictly,  never  allowing  him 
to  have  his  way  in  anything.  On  the  contrary,  she 
continued  to  consider  herself  the  sole  source  of  all 
wisdom  and  success. 


DIETEGEN 


DIETEGEN 

TO  the  north  of  those  hills  and  woods  where 
Seldwyla  nestles,  there  flourished  as  late  as  the 
end  of  the  fifteenth  century  the  town  of  Ruechenstein, 
lying  in  the  cool  shade,  whereas  her  rival  Seldwyla 
basked  in  the  full  glare  of  the  midday  sun.  Gray  and 
forbidding  looked  the  massed  body  of  its  towers  and 
strong  walls,  and  upstanding  and  just  were  its  council- 
men  and  citizens,  but  severe  and  morose  also,  and 
their  chief  employment  consisted  in  the  execution 
of  their  prerogatives  as  an  independent  city,  in  the 
exercise  of  law  and  justice,  the  issuing  of  mandates 
and  decrees,  of  impeachments  and  committals.  The 
greatest  source  of  their  pride  was  the  fact  that  there 
had  been  conferred  on  them  the  exercise  and  en- 
forcement of  the  power  over  life  and  death  of  all 
subject  to  their  sway,  and  so  eager  and  willing  they 
were  to  sacrifice  for  this  power  their  all,  their  privi- 
leges and  their  substance,  as  entrusted  to  them  by 
Empire  and  supreme  ruler,  as  other  commonwealths 
were  to  achieve  their  liberty  of  conscience  and  the 
freedom  of  worship  according  to  their  faith. 

On  the  rocky  promontories  all  around  their  town 
wore   conspicuous  the  emblems  of  their  dread  sov- 


84  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

ereignty.  Such  as  tall  gallows  and  scaffolds,  sundry 
places  of  execution,  showing  the  wheel  where  mis- 
creants had  their  limbs  broken,  the  stake  where  here- 
tics or  other  evildoers  were  made  to  suffer,  and  their 
grim-faced  town  hall  was  hung  full  of  iron  chains  with 
neck  rings;  steel  cages  were  exhibited  on  the  towers 
of  the  walls,  and  wooden  drills  wherein  loose-tongued 
or  wicked  women  were  being  stretched  and  turned, 
could  be  seen  at  almost  every  corner.  Even  by  the 
shore  of  the  dark-blue  river  which  washed  the  walls 
of  the  town,  sundry  stations  had  been  erected  where 
malefactors  could  be  drowned  or  ducked,  with  tied 
feet  or  in  sacks,  according  to  the  finer  discriminations 
of  the  decree  of  judgment. 

Now  it  need  not  be  supposed  that  because  of  all 
this  the  Ruechensteiners  were  iron  men,  robust  and 
inspiring  terror  by  their  looks,  such  as  one  would  be 
inchned  to  think  from  their  favorite  pastimes.  That 
was  indeed  not  the  case.  Rather  were  they  people 
of  ordinary,  philistine  appearance,  with  thin  shanks 
and  pot-bellies,  their  only  distinctive  mark  being 
their  yellow  noses,  the  same  noses  with  which  the  year 
around  they  used  to  besniff  and  watch  each  other. 
And  nobody  indeed  would  have  guessed  from  the 
more  than  commonplace  and  scanty  semblance  of 
their  whole  physical  being  that  their  nerves  were 
like  ropes,  such  as  were  absolutely  required  not  only  to 
view  all  along  the  grewsome  sights  offered  to  them  by 
their  authorities  in  the  putting  to  a  shameful  and 


DIETEGEN  85 

lingering  death  of  scores  and  scores  of  felons  and  other 
poor  wretches  condemned  by  their  councilmen,  but 
actually  to  enjoy  the  sight.  These  cruel  instincts  of 
theirs  were  not  apparent  on  their  faces;  they  were 
hidden  away  in  their  hearts. 

Thus  they  kept  spread  like  a  dense  net  their  judici- 
ary powers  over  the  dominion  subject  to  their  fierce 
rule,  always  eager  for  a  chance  to  apply  it.  And  in- 
deed nowhere  were  there  such  singular  crimes  to  punish 
as  in  this  same  Ruechenstein.  Their  inventive  gift 
was  fairly  inexhaustible.  It  seemed  almost  as  though 
their  talent  for  discovering  ever  new  and  hitherto 
unheard-of  crimes  acted  as  a  spur  on  sinners  to  commit 
the  latest  delinquencies  threatened  with  penalties  of 
the  severest  type.  However,  if  despite  all  this  at  any 
time  there  was  a  lack  of  evildoers,  the  people  of  the 
town  knew  how  to  help  themselves.  For  then  they 
simply  caught  and  punished  the  rascals  of  other  towns. 
And  it  was  only  a  man  with  a  clear  conscience  who  had 
the  hardihood  to  cross  at  any  time  the  territory  of 
Ruechenstein.  For  when  they  heard  of  a  crime 
committed,  even  if  done  far  away  from  their  own  area, 
they  would  seize  and  hold  the  first  landloper  that 
came  along,  put  him  to  the  torture  and  make  him 
confess  his  guilt.  Not  infrequently  it  would  happen 
that  such  enforced  confession  related  to  a  crime  that, 
as  later  turned  out,  had  only  been  based  on  hearsay, 
and  had  really  never  been  done.  But  then  it  was  too 
late.    The   supposed   malefactor   had   been   hung   in 


86  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

chains  on  the  gallows  or  otherwise  disposed  of,  and 
could  not  be  brought  to  life  again.  Of  course,  it  was 
unavoidable  that  because  of  this  incHnation  of  the 
people  of  Ruechenstein  they  would  often  get  into  a 
more  or  less  acrimonious  controversy  with  other  towns 
whose  citizens  they  had  thus  overzealously  dispatched, 
and  they  even  had  constantly  pending  a  number  of 
such  cases  before  the  Swiss  federal  council,  and  had  to 
be  sharply  reprimanded,  but  that  did  not  cure  them. 

By  preference  the  people  of  Ruechenstein  liked  calm, 
sunny,  pleasant  weather  when  indulging  in  their 
favorite  amusement  of  holding  penal  executions, 
burnings  at  the  stake,  and  forcible  drownings,  and 
that  is  why  on  fine  summer  days  there  was  always 
something  of  the  kind  going  on  there.  The  wanderer 
in  a  far-off  field  might  then,  keeping  his  eyes  fastened 
on  the  greyish  rock  buttress  high  up  on  the  horizon, 
notice  not  infrequently  the  flashing  of  the  headsman's 
sword,  the  smoke  pillar  of  the  stake,  or  in  the  bed  of 
the  river  something  like  the  glittering  leaping  of  a 
fish,  which  would  usually  mean  the  bobbing  up  and 
down  of  a  w^'tch  undergoing  the  solemn  test.  And  the 
word  of  God  on  a  Sunday  they  would  not  have  relished 
at  all  without  at  least  one  erring  lovers'  couple  with 
straw  wreaths  before  the  altar  and  without  the  read- 
ing out  of  some  sharpened  moral  mandates. 

Other  festivals,  processions  and  pubHc  pleasures 
there  were  none;  all  such  were  prohibited  by  numerous 
mandates  or  ordinances. 


DIETEGEN  87 

It  may  easily  be  supposed  that  a  town  of  that  stripe 
could  have  no  more  distasteful  neighbors  than  Seld- 
wyla,  and  behind  their  woods,  too,  they  would  forever 
think  up  new  methods  of  interfering  with  and  annoy- 
ing them.  Any  Seldwylian  whom  they  caught  on 
their  own  soil  was  seized  and  tortured  to  get  at  the 
facts  regarding  the  latest  breach  of  the  peace  or  any 
other  misdemeanor  charged  upon  their  neighbor's 
score.  And  on  their  account,  to  get  even,  the  Seld- 
wyla  people  made  fast  every  man  of  Ruechenstein 
and,  on  their  pubHc  market  square,  administered 
to  him  six  choice  blows  with  the  rod,  on  the  spot  which 
they  deemed  specially  adapted  for  that  purpose. 
This,  though,  was  as  far  as  they  ever  went,  for  they 
had  a  prejudice  against  bloody  spectacles,  and  amongst 
themselves  never  indulged  in  corporal  punishments. 
But  in  addition  to  this  mild  chastisement  they  would 
also  blacken  the  long  nose  of  the  culprit,  and  then 
they  would  let  him  run  home.  That  was  why  there 
always  were  in  Ruechenstein  several  specially  dis- 
gruntled persons  with  noses  dyed  black  that  but 
slowly  were  recovering  their  pristine  hue,  and  these 
naturally  were  particularly  zealous  in  trying  to  unearth 
miscreants  that  could  be  dealt  with  severely  and 
subjected  to  castigation  or  torture. 

The  Seldwylians  on  their  part  kept  this  black  paint 
constantly  ready  in  a  huge  iron  pot,  and  upon  this  was 
limned  the  Ruechenstein  town  escutcheon,  and  they 
denominated  this  pot  the  "friendly  neighbor."    This 


88  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 


and  the  huge  paint  brush  belonging  to  it  was  always 
suspended  under  the  arch  of  the  gate  fronting  towards 
Ruechenstein.  When  this  tincture  had  dried  up  or 
been  used  up  it  was  renewed  and  the  occasion  utilized 
to  get  up  a  frolicsome  procession  ending  with  a  gay 
banquet,  all  with  a  view  to  rendering  the  neighbor 
ridiculous.  And  because  of  this  at  one  time  the 
latter  became  so  wrathful  that  their  whole  town 
turned  out,  banners  flying,  to  inflict  punishment  on 
the  SeldwyHans. 

But  these,  informed  of  this  intention,  quickly 
issued  forth  and  waylaid  the  Ruechenstein  hosts, 
attacking  them  unawares.  However,  the  Ruechen- 
steiners  had  marching  at  the  head  of  their  column 
a  dozen  of  graybearded  and  fierce-looking  civic  soldiers, 
with  new  ropes  tied  to  the  handles  of  their  long  swords, 
and  these  wore  such  an  unholy  mien  as  to  scare  the 
merry  Seldwylian  blades.  The  latter,  in  fact,  began 
to  back  out,  and  they  were  on  the  point  of  losing  the^ 
fight  if  a  clever  conceit  had  not  saved  them.  For 
just  for  fun  they  had  been  carrying  along  the  punitive 
pot  of  paint,  etc.,  "the  friendly  neighbor,"  and  instead 
of  a  banner  the  long  paint  brush.  With  quick  in- 
tuition the  bearer  of  the  latter  dipped  his  brush  deeply 
into  the  dark  Hquid,  bounded  ahead  of  his  comrades 
like  a  flash,  and  bedaubed  the  faces  of  the  leading 
rank  of  foes  a  sable  hue  before  these  knew  what  he 
was  about.  So  that  all  those  in  front,  threatened 
immediately   with   this   indelible   paint,    turned   and 


DIETEGEN  89 

fled,  and  that  nobody  of  them  all  further  felt  like 
marching  in  the  van  of  the  host.  With  that  the 
whole  outfit  began  to  sway,  and  a  strange  terror  fell 
on  them  all,  whereas  the  Seldwylians  now,  their  cour- 
age restored,  manfully  went  up  against  the  men  of 
Ruechenstein,  pressing  them  back  towards  the  rear, 
in  the  direction  of  their  own  town.  With  savage 
laughter  the  Seldwyla  people  took  advantage  of  the 
occasion,  and  wherever  their  foes  dared  to  defend 
themselves  the  dreaded  paint  brush  came  into  instant 
action,  handled  with  supreme  skill  by  means  of  its 
long  shaft,  and  in  the  melee  there  was  indeed  no  lack 
of  real  heroism.  For  twice  already  the  daring  painters 
had  been  pierced  by  arrows  and  fallen  to  rise  no  more. 
But  each  time  some  other  equally  courageous  fellow 
had  sprung  into  the  gap,  and  had  treated  the  foe 
in  the  same  ignominious  manner. 

In  the  end  the  Ruechensteiners  were  totally  de- 
feated, and  they  fled  with  their  banner  towards  the 
clump  of  woods  which  led  to  their  town,  with  the 
Seldwyla  people  on  their  heels.  Barely  were  they 
able  to  find  refuge  in  their  town,  and  to  close  the  gate 
thereof,  and  the  latter,  too,  was  painted  all  over  by 
the  pursuing  foe  with  the  black  paint,  together  with 
its  drawbridge,  until  the  Ruechensteiners,  somewhat 
recovered  and  collected  again,  threw  potfuls  of  white- 
wash upon  the  heads  of  the  uproarious  painters. 

But  because  a  few  Seldwylians  of  note  who  in  the 
heat  of  combat  had  penetrated  into  the  town  and  there 


90  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

been  taken  prisoner,  and  also  about  a  dozen  of  the 
Ruechensteiners  had  Hkewise  been  seized  and  held 
by  the  victors,  there  was  effected  an  armistice  after 
the  lapse  of  a  few  days.  The  prisoners  were  exchanged 
on  both  sides,  and  a  regular  peace  was  concluded, 
in  which  both  sides  gave  way  a  bit.  There  had  been 
fighting  enough  to  suit  them  for  a  spell,  and  there  was 
a  desire  for  a  mutual  adjustment.  So  it  came  to  pass 
that  both  sides  made  fair  promises  of  future  good 
behavior.  The  Seldwyla  people  bound  themselves 
to  give  up  the  iron  paint  pot,  and  to  abolish  it  forever, 
and  the  people  of  Ruechenstein  solemnly  relinquished 
all  rights  of  seizure  against  SeldwyHans  out  walking 
or  strolling  in  the  Ruechenstein  territory,  and  all 
other  privileges  and  prerogatives  on  either  side  were 
carefully  weighed  and  mostly  abolished. 

To  confirm  this  agreement  a  day  was  appointed, 
and  as  place  of  meeting  was  chosen  the  mountain 
clearing  where  the  chief  fight  had  occurred.  From 
Ruechenstein  came  a  few  of  the  younger  councilmen; 
for  their  elders  had  not  succeeded  in  overcoming  their 
strong  feeUngs  of  reluctance  to  consort  with  their 
ancient  foes  on  terms  of  quasi  friendship.  The  Seld- 
wyla people  on  their  part  showed  up  in  goodly  numbers, 
brought  the  "friendly  neighbor,"  the  heraldic  paint 
pot,  as  well  as  a  small  cask  of  their  choicest  and  oldest 
wine,  grown  on  the  municipal  vineyards,  with  them, 
and  also  a  number  of  their  finest  silver  or  gilt  tank- 
ards and  trenchers  which  belonged   to   their  munici- 


DIETEGEN  91 

pal  treasure.  In  this  way  they  nicely  befooled 
the  delegates  from  Ruechenstein,  glad  to  escape  for 
even  a  short  spell  the  rigid  regimen  of  their  own  town, 
and  they  were  so  charmed  at  this  reception  that  they, 
instead  of  immediately  returning  after  the  consum- 
mation of  their  errand,  allowed  themselves  to  be 
inveigled  in  following  the  tempters  to  Seldwyla  itself. 
There  they  were  escorted  to  the  town  hall,  where  a 
grand  feast  was  awaiting  them.  Beautiful  ladies  and 
maidens  attended  the  occasion,  and  more  and  more 
tankards,  beakers,  and  flagons  were  set  up  on  the 
banqueting  board,  so  that  with  the  glitter  and  sheen 
of  all  this  precious  metal  and  the  gleaming  of  all 
these  bewitching  eyes  the  poor  Ruechensteiners  clean 
forgot  their  original  mission  and  became  as  gay  as 
larks.  They  sang,  since  they  knew  no  other  tunes, 
one  Latin  psalm  after  another,  while  the  Seldwylians 
on  their  part  hummed  wicked  drinking  songs,  and 
finally  they  wound  up  in  the  midst  of  the  noise  by 
inviting  their  new  Seldwyla  friends  to  make  a  return 
visit  to  their  own  town,  being  most  particular  to  in- 
clude the  Seldwyla  ladies  in  the  invitation,  and  promis- 
ing them  the  most  hospitable  reception. 

This  invitation  was  accepted  unanimously,  amidst 
great  enthusiasm  on  both  sides,  and  when  the  dele- 
gates from  Ruechenstein  at  last  departed,  they  did 
so  under  the  happiest  auspices,  smiling  blissfully 
from  all  the  choice  wine  under  their  belts,  and  deem- 
ing themselves  conquerors  of  the  handsome  Seldwyla 


92  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

ladies  besides,  since  a  number  of  these,  laughing  and 
in  rosy  humor,  gave  them  safe  conduct  as  far  as  the 
gates  of  the  city. 

Of  course,  things  took  on  a  somewhat  dijfferent 
hue  when  these  jolly  young  councilmen  of  Ruechen- 
stein  on  the  following  day  awoke  in  their  stern  city 
and  had  to  give  an  account  of  their  stewardship  and 
of  the  whole  proceedings  on  the  day  previous.  Little 
was  wanting  indeed,  and  they  would  have  been  in- 
carcerated and  subjected  to  ardent  tests  on  the  charge 
of  having  been  bewitched.  However,  they  them- 
selves had  also  a  right  to  speak  with  authority,  and 
notwithstanding  that  the  whole  matter  already  seemed 
to  them  a  mistake  on  their  part,  they  nevertheless 
stuck  to  their  bargain,  and  strongly  represented  to 
their  elder  colleagues  that  the  very  honor  of  the  city 
demanded  a  resplendent  reception  of  the  Seldwylian 
folks.  Their  views  gained  acceptance  among  a  sec- 
tion of  the  citizens,  especially  when  they  described 
the  magnificent  table  silver  that  had  been  brought 
out  to  honor  them,  and  when  they  spoke  of  the  hand- 
some Seldwyla  ladies  and  their  gracefulness  and  beauti- 
ful attire.  The  men  were  of  opinion  that  such 
ostentatious  hospitality  must  not  go  unrebuked  and 
unrivaled,  and  that  it  was  necessary  to  reciprocate 
at  the  coming  return  visit  of  their  ancient  foes  by  a 
display  of  their  own  wealth,  jeweled  and  precious 
tableware  glittering  in  their  own  iron  safes  aplenty. 
The  women  again  were  itching  to  circumvent  on  such 


DIETEGEN  93 

a  favorable  occasion  the  strict  decrees  against  too 
profuse  finery  from  which  they  had  been  suffering 
so  long,  and  under  the  guise  of  civic  patriotism  to 
make  a  gaudy  display  of  all  their  hidden  trinkets  and 
gorgeous  silks.  For  in  their  coffers  and  lockers  there 
was  slumbering  enough  of  costly  stuffs  to  outshine 
the  Seldwyla  ladies  tenfold,  they  thought.  If  that  had 
not  been  the  case  they  would  surely  long  ago  have 
rebelled  against  the  severe  sumptuary  decrees  in  vogue 
and  brought  the  regiment  in  power  to  its  fall.  There- 
fore, everything  considered,  the  promise  made  by  the 
Ruechenstein  emissaries  was  formally  approved,  to 
the  great  grief  of  the  elder  and  sterner  members  of 
the  council. 

To  offset  this  piece  of  laxity  they  were  unable  to 
hinder  these  latter,  the  graybeards  of  the  city,  resolved, 
however,  to  enjoy  another  kind  of  spectacle  on  their 
own  account,  and  thus  they  began  to  make  their 
arrangements  to  have  an  execution  performed  on  the 
very  day  when  the  Seldwyla  people  were  to  dwell 
within  their  walls,  and  thus  to  dampen  at  least,  so 
far  as  they  could,  the  unseemly  spirit  of  merriment 
which  otherwise  would  go  unchecked.  And  so  while 
the  younger  members  of  the  council  were  busy  with 
their  preparations  for  the  feast,  the  others  quietly 
made  arrangements  for  another  show  after  their  own 
heart,  and  for  that  purpose  they  selected  a  young, 
fatherless  boy  who  was  just  then  caught  in  the  net 
of  their  barbarous  laws.    It  was  a  very  handsome 


94  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

boy  of  eleven,  whose  parents  had  both  been  engulfed 
in  the  recent  wars,  and  who  was  being  educated  and 
taken  care  of  by  the  town.  That  is  to  say,  he  had 
been  put  to  board  with  the  parish  beadle,  a  conscience- 
less and  pitiless  scoundrel,  and  there  the  little  fellow  — 
a  slender,  vigorous  and  well-formed  child  enough  — 
had  been  treated  just  like  a  domestic  animal,  the  wife 
aiding  her  husband  in  the  task.  The  boy  had  been 
named  Dietegen,  and  this  his  baptismal  name  was 
all  he  really  owned  in  the  world.  It  was  his  sole 
piece  of  property,  his  past  and  his  future.  He  was 
dressed  in  rags,  and  had  never  even  had  a  holiday 
garment,  so  that  if  it  had  not  been  for  his  good  looks 
he  would  have  presented  a  miserable  appearance. 
He  had  to  sweep  and  dust,  and  to  do  all  the  tasks 
that  usually  fall  to  a  maid  servant,  and  whenever  the 
beadle's  wife  did  not  happen  to  have  anything  to  do 
for  him  in  her  own  house  she  lent  him  out  to  women 
neighbors  for  a  trifle,  there  to  do  anything  that  might 
be  asked  of  him.  They  all  thought  him,  in  spite  of 
his  strength  and  skill  to  do  any  work  demanded  of 
him,  a  stupid  fellow,  and  this  because  he  obeyed 
silently  all  the  orders  he  received  and  because  he  never 
remonstrated.  Yet  it  was  the  truth  that  none  of  the 
women  was  able  to  look  him  in  his  fiery  eyes  for  long, 
and  these  eyes  would  often  wander  about  as  keen  as 
an  eagle's. 

Now  several  days  before  Dietegen  had  been  sent  on 
an  errand  to  the  cooper  in  order  to  fetch  some  vinegar 


DIETEGEN  95 

for  a  lettuce  salad  that  his  foster  parents  wanted  to 
prepare.  Their  vinegar  the  couple  had  been  keeping 
for  a  long  time  customarily  in  a  small  jug,  and  this 
was  almost  black  with  age  and  had  always  been  deemed 
cheap  tin,  having  been  bought  many  years  ago  by 
the  mother  of  the  beadle's  wife  for  a  couple  of  pennies 
from  a  peddler.  But  in  reality  the  little  jug  was  of 
silver.  The  cooper  of  whom  the  vinegar  was  to  be 
purchased  dwelt  rather  far,  in  a  lonesome  place  near 
the  city  wall.  As  now  the  boy  came  walking  along 
with  his  small  vessel,  an  ancient  Hebrew  came  past 
him  with  his  bag,  and  threw  a  rapid  glance  at  the 
curiously  fashioned  little  jug,  and  stopped  the  boy 
with  the  request  to  be  allowed  to  examine  this  vessel 
more  closely.  Dietegen  handed  it  to  him,  and  the 
Jew  quickly  and  secretly  scratched  the  surface  of  the 
vessel  with  his  thumb  nail,  offering  then  to  the  aston- 
ished boy  a  pretty  crossbow  in  exchange,  and  this  he 
produced  at  once  out  of  a  bag  made  of  moth-eaten 
otterskin,  with  a  few  bolts  to  boot.  Boy-like,  Diete- 
gen at  once  seized  the  weapon  and  relinquished  his 
small  jug  to  the  Jew,  who  then  at  once  disappeared. 
Rejoicing  in  his  good  fortune  the  boy  now  began  to 
aim  and  shoot  at  the  small  gate  of  the  near-by  door 
of  a  tower,  and  without  being  at  all  disturbed  he  con- 
tinued this  enticing  sport,  forgetting  everything  else, 
until  dusk  came  and  then  moonlight,  improving  his 
aim  steadily,  and  shooting  by  the  bright  light  of 
the  orb. 


96  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

Meanwhile  the  beadle  had  also  made  a  last  inspec- 
tion tour  around  the  inside  of  the  town  walls,  and  had 
met  with  and  held  the  Jew  with  his  bag.  Examining 
the  latter  he  had  with  amazement  recognized  his 
own  vinegar  jug,  and  questioning  the  Jew  the  latter, 
in  fear  of  his  own  neck,  owned  at  once  that  it  was  of 
silver,  and  pretended  that  a  young  boy  had  forced 
it  on  him  in  lieu  of  a  fine  crossbow.  Now  the  beadle 
ran  and  consulted  a  goldsmith,  who  on  testing  the 
vessel  likewise  pronounced  it  fine  pure  silver  and  of 
rarest  workmanship.  Thereupon  the  beadle  and  his 
wife,  the  latter  now  having  joined  him,  became  ex- 
ceedingly angry,  not  only  because  they  had  had,  with- 
out knowing  it,  for  so  many  years  such  a  valuable 
piece  of  property,  but  also  because  they  had  almost 
lost  it. 

The  world  to  them  seemed  to  be  full  of  the  grossest 
wrong;  the  child  now  appeared  to  them  as  their 
archenemy  who  had  almost  cheated  them  out  of  their 
eternal  reward,  the  reward  for  their  infinite  merits 
and  frugality.  They  suddenly  pretended  to  have 
known  for  a  long  time  that  the  small  jug  was  of  silver, 
and  that  it  had  always  been  so  considered  in  their 
house.  Cursing  him  bitterly  they  clamorously  charged 
the  little  fellow  with  larceny,  and  while  he,  entirely 
unconscious  of  all  this,  was  still  engaged  with  his 
crossbow  practice,  and  was  hitting  his  goal  more  and 
more  often,  two  groups  of  searchers  were  already  out 
looking  for  him.    At  the  head  of  the  one  party  was 


DIETEGEN  97 

the  beadle,  while  the  woman,  his  wife,  was  heading 
the  other.  Thus  they  soon  found  him,  still  busily 
engaged  with  his  bow  and  bolts,  and  unpleasantly 
wakened  from  his  occupation  when  surrounded  by 
the  thief-takers.  And  now  only  he  remembered  his 
errand  and  at  the  same  time  the  loss  of  the  small 
vessel.  But  he  believed  he  had  made  a  good  bargain, 
and  handed  the  beadle  smilingly  his  crossbow,  in 
order  to  pacify  him.  Notwithstanding  this  he  was 
instantly  bound  and  gagged,  carried  off  to  jail,  and 
then  examined.  He  admitted  at  once  having  ex- 
changed the  little  pitcher  for  the  Jew's  crossbow,  and 
did  not  even  attempt  to  defend  himself. 

The  poor  little  child  was  condemned  to  the  gallows, 
and  the  time  of  his  death  set  for  the  very  day  when 
the  Seldwylians  were  to  visit  the  people  of  Ruechen- 
stein. 

And  indeed  they  did  appear  on  the  appointed  day, 
making  a  gorgeous  procession,  in  luminous  colors  and 
rich  finery,  with  their  town  trumpeter  to  lead  them. 
They  were,  however,  all  armed  with  swords  and 
daggers,  although  that  did  not  hinder  them  from  bring- 
ing along  a  dozen  of  their  most  fearless  ladies.  These 
rode  in  the  centre  of  the  cavalcade,  charming  and 
richly  attired,  and  even  a  number  of  pretty  children 
were  with  them,  costumed  in  the  colors  of  Seldwyla 
and  bearing  gifts. 

The  young  councilmen  of  Ruechenstein,  their  new- 
won  friends,   rode  out  some  little  distance  without 


98  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

the  city  gates  to  welcome  them,  and  led  them  a  bit 
crestfallen  within.  The  strong  entrance  gate  had  had 
that  ominous  black  paint  scratched  off  as  much  as  had 
been  found  feasible,  had  then  been  plentifully  white- 
washed and  decorated  with  wreaths.  But  just  within 
this  gate  the  guests  found  the  whole  contingent  of 
Ruechenstein's  town  mercenaries  in  rank  and  file, 
clad  in  full  armor  and  looking  like  brawny  warriors 
indeed.  These  escorted  the  guests,  rattling  and 
clanging  in  their  iron  harness,  through  the  shady  and 
rather  dark  streets,  with  fierce  mien.  The  people  of 
the  town  peered  mute  but  curious  out  of  their  windows, 
as  though  their  guests  had  been  beings  from  another 
world.  When  one  of  the  gay  Seldwylians  gazed  up- 
wards at  the  ladies  leaning  out  of  their  windows, 
these  would  at  once  duck  and  disappear.  Their 
menfolk,  though,  flattened  the  tips  of  their  long  noses 
against  the  greenish  window  panes,  in  order  to  observe 
as  closely  as  possible  the  spectacle  of  bare  female 
necks,  such  as  the  Seldwyla  ladies  offered. 

Thus,  then,  the  whole  cavalcade  finally  reached  the 
huge  hall  inside  the  town  house,  and  that  looked  ornate 
but  forbiddingly  austere.  Walls  and  ceiling  were 
decorated  entirely  with  black-tinted  oak,  here  and 
there  gilt.  A  long,  long  banqueting  board  was  cov- 
ered with  beautiful  linen,  and  woven  into  it  were 
foliage,  stags,  huntsmen  and  dogs  of  green  silk  picked 
out  with  thin  gold  wire.  Above  this  were  further 
spread  dainty  napkins  of  snowy  white  damask,  and 


DIETEGEN  99 

these  again  on  nearer  sight  exhibited  patterns  woven 
into  them  representing  rather  broadly  joyous  scenes 
from  Roman  and  Greek  mythology,  such  as  would 
have  been  least  expected  in  this  grave  concourse. 
Thickly  grouped  there  stood  on  this  festal  table  every- 
thing which  at  that  time  belonged  to  a  gala  meal, 
and  what  particularly  claimed  the  attention  of  the 
Seldwyla  observers  was  a  number  of  truly  magnificent 
pieces  of  tableware  —  some  of  them  being  in  repousse 
work,  some  round  and  some  in  relief,  a  glittering  world 
of  nymphs,  fauns,  nude  demigods  and  heroes,  with 
lovely  feminine  forms  intermingled.  Even  the  chiel 
table  ornament,  a  warship  in  soHd  silver,  with  sails 
spread  and  bellying  in  the  breeze,  otherwise  very 
respectable  and  officially  stiff,  showed  as  its  emblem 
a  Galathea  of  the  most  opulent  forms. 

Along  this  table  of  enormous  dimensions  a  number 
of  the  wives  of  councilors  were  slowly  pacing  to  and 
fro,  all  of  them  dressed  either  in  black  or  scarlet  silks 
and  satins,  heavy  lace  covering  bosom  and  neck  up 
to  the  very  chin.  They  did  wear  many  gold  chains, 
girdles  and  caps,  encrusted  with  jewels  in  many  cases, 
and  on  their  fingers  they  had,  over  their  gloves,  price- 
less rings.  And  these  ladies  were  not  ugly  to  look 
at,  but  rather  in  most  instances  handsome  and  of 
regular  features;  many  of  them,  too,  showed  a  dehcate 
complexion  and  their  pretty  oval  cheeks  were  rosy. 
But  nearly  all  had  an  unpleasant  glance,  severe  and 
sour,  so  that  it  seemed  doubtful  whether  they  had 


loo  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

ever  smiled  in  their  lives,  save  perhaps  at  nighttime 
after  fooling  their  gullible  husbands. 

The  mutual  introductions  were  therefore  not  very 
cordial,  and  everybody  seemed  indeed  glad  when 
this  ceremony  was  over  and  guests  and  hosts  both  sat 
down  at  table  and  the  feelings  of  embarrassment  could 
be  concealed  by  the  engrossing  charms  of  eating  and 
drinking.  The  Seldwylians  were  the  first  to  recover 
their  natural  equanimity,  and  then  there  could  be 
heard  among  them  frequent  outbursts  of  hilarity  as 
they  admired  the  dazzling  table  trappings.  That 
indeed  was  to  the  liking  of  their  hosts,  and  they  were 
just  on  the  point  of  starting  a  formal  conversation  on 
that  topic,  when  the  matter  took  a  turn  wholly  un- 
expected by  them.  For  the  Seldwyla  people,  accus- 
tomed always  to  use  their  eyes,  had  quickly  discovered 
the  amorous  and  graceful  topics  which  the  weaver's 
art  had  embodied  in  the  woof  of  this  linen  and  the 
goldsmith's  in  the  silver  and  goldware  so  Hberally 
displayed  before  their  eyes.  After  allowing,  therefore, 
their  ribald  glances  to  dwell  with  a  close  scrutiny 
on  the  lustful  scenes  depicted  here,  many  Seldwylians 
called  the  attention  of  their  neighbors  to  it  all,  all 
smiles  and  good  humor,  and  interpreted  the  true 
meaning  of  the  scene  in  each  instance,  often  naming 
Ovid  or  some  other  heathen  author  as  the  original 
source.  Even  the  Seldwyla  ladies  did  not  refrain, 
but  shared  in  this  amusement  of  their  husbands. 
The  hosts  at  first  were  slow  to  understand  this  and 


DIETEGEN  loi 

were  inclined  to  think  it  one  of  the  childish  tricks  for 
which  they  were  forever  blaming  their  merry  neighbors 
of  Seldwyla,  but  as  they  finally  likewise  bent  their 
glances  on  the  things  occasioning  the  outbursts  of  their 
guests,  they  were  as  though  smitten  with  palsy.  For 
it  had  never  entered  their  minds  before  to  look  with 
attention  at  these  table  appointments,  and  had  merely 
accepted,  when  ordered  by  them,  the  exquisite  prod- 
ucts of  the  loom  or  of  the  goldsmith's  skill  as  finished 
ware  without  ever  bothering  their  heads  further  about 
it,  and  nothing  had  been  further  from  them  than  to 
cast  critical  glances  at  the  subjects  represented  by 
these  artisans,  and  it  was  thus  reserved  for  their  gay 
guests  from  Seldwyla  to  sharpen  their  vision  so  to 
speak.  Now  when  looking  closer  and  closer,  they 
perceived  what  pagan  horrors  they  had  chosen  to 
ornament  their  own  board  with,  and  they  were  struck 
dumb  with  painful  amazement.  But  what  irked 
them  still  more  was  what  they  deemed  the  lack  of 
tact  and  decorum  on  the  part  of  their  guests  who, 
instead  of  purposely  overlooking  such  an  involuntary 
blunder  of  their  hosts  actually  magnified  it  and  drew 
it  into  the  full  glare  of  publicity.  According  to  their 
way  of  thinking  what  the  Seldwylians  ought  to  have 
done  under  these  peculiar  circumstances  was  to  praise 
and  pay  attention  to  the  costHness  of  the  stuff  out  of 
which  these  implements  had  been  fashioned,  and  not 
to  go  beyond  that.  The  Ruechensteiner  grandees 
now  were  obliged  to  smile  with  faces  as  sour  as  vine- 


102  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

gar  when  a  Seldwylian  neighbor  would  call  their 
attention  to  an  exquisitely  wrought  silver  Leda  and 
the  Swan,  or  to  a  Europa  on  the  back  of  her  bull. 
Their  wives,  however,  showed  their  displeasure  more 
openly,  blushed  and  paled  by  turns  with  wrath,  and 
were  just  on  the  point  of  demonstratively  leaving 
the  banquet  when  the  mournful  sound  of  a  bell  quickly 
reassured  them.  For  it  was  the  poor  sinners'  bell  of 
Ruechenstein.  A  dull  and  confused  din  in  the  streets 
gave  notice  that  young  Dietegen  was  now  being  led 
to  his  shameful  death.  All  the  company  rose  from 
the  table,  and  hastened  to  the  windows,  the  Ruechen- 
steiners  purposely  making  room  for  their  guests  to 
enable  these  to  view  the  sad  spectacle  plainly,  while 
they  themselves  stood  in  the  rear,  an  insidious  grin 
on  their  sallow  features. 

A  priest,  a  hangman  with  his  helper,  some  court 
ojficials,  and  a  few  armed  attendants  of  the  council 
went  slowly  past,  and  at  their  head  walked  Dietegen, 
barefooted  and  clad  only  in  a  white,  black-edged 
delinquent  shift,  his  hands  tied  in  the  back,  and  led  by 
the  hangman  at  a  rope.  His  golden  hair  fell  in  a 
shower  down  his  white  neck,  and  confused  and  appeal- 
ingly  he  looked  aloft  at  the  houses  which  he  passed. 
Under  the  portal  of  the  town  hall  stood  the  boys  and 
girls  from  Seldwyla,  who  had,  after  the  manner  of 
children,  left  the  table  and  the  weary  banquet,  and 
had  hastened  into  the  open  air.  When  the  pitiful 
delinquent    saw    these    pretty    and    happy    children, 


DIETEGEN  103 

the  like  he  had  never  yet  perceived  before,  he  wanted 
to  stop  a  moment  and  talk  to  them,  while  tears  were 
streaming  down  his  pale  cheeks.  But  the  executioner 
roughly  pushed  him  on,  so  that  the  train  passed  on  and 
had  soon  disappeared  from  view.  The  Seldwyla 
ladies  lost  color  when  they  watched  this  scene,  and 
their  men  were  seized  with  a  deep  dismay,  since  they 
at  no  time  loved  to  see  sights  of  this  kind.  They 
felt  out  of  spirits  and  not  at  home  with  their  hosts 
after  such  an  exhibition,  and  thus  they  soon  yielded 
to  the  urging  of  their  womenfolk,  and  as  politely  as 
they  could  took  leave  of  their  grim  hosts.  The  people 
of  Ruechenstein,  on  the  other  hand,  were  satisfied 
with  the  triumph  they  had  scored  against  their  volatile 
guests,  and  thereby  rendered  almost  complaisant 
towards  them,  so  that  both  sides  parted  amicably. 
The  hosts  even  escorted  their  honored  guests,  as 
they  put  it,  to  the  town  gate,  and  were  talkative, 
gallant  towards  the  ladies,  and  courteous. 

Outside  the  gate  the  Seldwyla  cavalcade  met  the 
small  group  of  hangmen  and  their  assistants,  who 
passed  them  morosely.  Behind  them  there  came  a 
single  helper  pushing  a  small  cart  whereon  lay,  in 
a  plain  pine  coffin,  the  young  delinquent's  body. 
Shy  and  bitten  with  curiosity  to  watch  this  number 
of  brilliantly  attired  persons,  this  fellow  stopped  for 
a  moment,  and  turned  aside,  in  order  to  let  the  pro- 
cession file  past  him.  He  was  placing  the  loose  lid 
of  the  bier  in  its  proper  place,  it  having  almost  slid 
off  and  exposed  the  sight  of  the  hanged. 


I04  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

Among  the  children  of  Seldwyla  there  was  a  seven- 
year-old  maid,  bold,  pretty  and  curly,  who  had  never 
ceased  to  weep  since  seeing  the  poor  boy  being  led 
to  the  gallows,  and  refused  to  be  consoled.  And  as 
the  train  of  Seldwylians  now  slowly  swept  on,  the 
child  at  the  moment  she  came  up  with  the  cart  and 
coffin,  quickly  sprang  towards  it,  stood  on  its  large 
wheel,  and  threw  off  the  lid,  so  that  the  lifeless  Diete- 
gen  lay  exposed  to  view.  At  that  moment  he  opened 
his  eyes  and  drew  a  breath.  For  in  the  confusion 
of  that  day  he  had  not  been  hanged  according  to 
traditional  rules,  and  had  been  taken  off  the  gallows 
too  early,  because  his  executioners  were  in  a  great 
hurry  in  the  hope  of  returning  to  town  in  time  to  get 
some  of  the  remnants  of  the  feast.  The  bold  little 
girl  loudly  exclaimed,  "He  is  still  alive!  He  is  still 
alive!" 

At  once  the  women  of  Seldwyla  surrounded  the  bier, 
and  when  they  saw  indeed  the  handsome  pale  boy 
move  about  and  give  signs  of  life,  they  took  possession 
of  him,  removed  him  from  the  cart,  and  fully  recalled 
him  to  this  world  by  rubbing  his  stiffened  joints, 
sprinkling  him  with  water,  making  him  swallow  some 
wine,  and  using  all  their  endeavors  in  other  ways. 
The  men  indeed  also  gave  their  assistance,  while  the 
gentlemen  of  Ruechenstein  stood  by  dazedly,  and 
did  not  know  what  to  say  or  do.  When  at  last  the 
boy  again  stood  on  his  own  feet,  and  gazed  about 
him  as  though  he  had  waked  in  paradise,  he  suddenly 


DIETEGEN  105 

caught  a  glimpse  of  the  hangman's  assistant,  and 
quite  astounded  that  he,  too,  as  he  thought,  had  gone 
to  heaven,  he  fled  and  squeezed  in  among  the  crowd  of 
women.  Touched  and  moved  to  tears,  they  begged 
with  great  earnestness  of  their  stern  neighbors  to 
pardon  the  boy  and  to  make  them  a  gift  of  him,  as 
a  token  of  their  new  friendship.  Their  husbands 
joined  in  this  petition,  and  finally,  after  a  brief  con- 
sultation amongst  themselves,  the  Ruechensteiners 
yielded  assent,  saying  that  henceforth  the  youthful 
sinner  was  to  be  theirs.  On  this  the  pretty  Seldwyla 
ladies  and  their  young  children  rejoiced  abundantly, 
and  Dietegen  went  along  with  them  just  as  he  was, 
in  his  poor  delinquent's  shift. 

It  happened  to  be  a  fine  mild  summer  evening, 
wherefore  the  Seldwyla  folks,  as  soon  as  they  had 
reached  the  crest  of  the  mountain  and  therewith 
also  their  own  territory,  resolved  to  amuse  them- 
selves here  in  this  delightful  grove,  on  their  own  ac- 
count, and  to  recover  from  the  frightful  experience  on 
their  neighbors'  ground.  And  this  all  the  more  be- 
cause there  now  approached  a  numerous  reenforce- 
ment  from  Seldwyla  itself,  full  of  curiosity  to  learn 
what  their  luck  had  been  in  Ruechenstein.  Thus  it 
came  to  pass  that  the  musicians  had  to  intone  a  merry 
tune  and  next  a  dance,  and  the  goblets  and  tankards 
were  filled  with  the  wine  they  had  brought  along,  and 
then  circulated  quite  rapidly. 

During  all  these  scenes  Dietegen  let  his  eyes  roam 


io6  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

all  around,  and  all  who  saw  him  perceived  clearly 
that  he  was  indeed  nothing  worse  than  an  innocent 
and  harmless  child,  a  notion  which  his  tale,  when 
asked  to  state  the  facts,  amply  confirmed.  The 
Seldwyla  women  could  hardly  get  their  fill  of  the 
sight,  wove  a  wreath  of  wildflowers  for  him,  and 
placed  it  on  his  young  head,  so  that  in  his  long  and 
ample  shift  he  looked  almost  like  a  little  saint.  He 
won  their  hearts,  and  at  last  they  kissed  him  to  their 
full  content,  and  when  he  had  thus  passed  through 
the  concourse  of  rivaling  femininity  they  began  anew 
with  their  kissing. 

But  the  Httle  girl  who  really  had  saved  Dietegen 
from  a  horrible  and  premature  death  did  not  at  all 
approve  of  this  proceeding.  Quite  wroth  she  suddenly 
placed  herself  between  the  boy  and  the  woman  who 
just  that  moment  was  on  the  point  of  kissing  him,  and 
took  him  by  the  hand,  leading  him  to  a  group  of  other 
children.  Then  the  whole  company  burst  out  laughing, 
saying :  "That  is  quite  right.  Little  Kuengolt  clings  to 
her  property!  And  she  has  taste  likewise.  Only  see  how 
well  she  and  the  boy  look  alongside  of  each  other!" 

Kuengolt's  father,  however,  the  chief  forester  of 
the  town,  remarked:  "I  like  the  looks  of  that  boy. 
He  has  eyes  that  speak  truth  and  good  sense.  If  you 
gentlemen  have  no  objection,  I  will  take  him  along 
for  the  time  being,  since  I  have  but  one  child,  and 
I  will  try  and  make  an  honest  huntsman  out  of  him." 

This  proposal  met  the  unanimous  approval  of  the 


DIETEGEN  107 

Seldwylians,  and  thus  Kuengolt,  well  contented,  did 
not  let  the  boy's  hand  slip  out  of  her  fingers  more, 
but  kept  tight  hold  of  it.  And  indeed,  these  two 
did  make  a  very  comely  pair.  The  httle  girl  also 
wore  a  wreath  on  her  head  and  was  clad  in  green  and 
red,  the  town's  colors.  Hence  they  went  at  the  head 
of  the  whole  merry  procession  like  a  picture  from 
fairyland,  in  the  midst  of  the  gay  townspeople.  And 
thus  they  all  in  the  glow  of  sunset  poured  down  the 
mountain  side  on  their  way  homewards.  Soon,  how- 
ever, the  chief  forester  separated  from  the  procession 
and  went  on  with  the  children  on  side  paths  to  his 
cosy  residence,  which  lay  not  far  from  the  city  itself 
in  the  forest.  A  double  row  of  tall  trees  led  to  the 
main  entrance,  and  there  the  demure  wife  of  the 
forester  sat  now,  and  saw  with  amazement  the  ap- 
proach of  the  two  children* 

The  household  servants  also  gathered,  and  while 
the  wife  gave  the  two  hungry  children  an  abundant 
supper  her  husband  related  in  detail  the  adventures 
of  the  boy.  The  latter  was  now  completely  exhausted, 
and  with  that  he  felt  cold  in  his  flimsy  costume,  and 
hence  the  question  was  put  who  would  share  over- 
night his  bed  with  him.  But  the  servant  maids  as 
well  as  the  men  anxiously  avoided  to  answer.  They 
dreaded  as  unlucky  and  impious  close  touch  with 
any  one  who  had  just  been  hanging  from  the  gallows. 
But  Kuengolt  cried:  "Let  him  share  my  bed.  It  is 
large  enough  for  both  of  us." 


io8  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

'"^  And  when  everybody  was  laughing  at  this,  her 
mother  said  pleasantly:  "You  are  quite  right,  my 
little  daughter."  And  looking  closely  at  the  boy  she 
added:  "From  the  very  first  moment  I  saw  the  poor 
little  chap  enter  the  door  a  strange  foreboding  crept 
over  me,  as  though  a  good  angel  were  coming  who 
will  yet  bring  us  a  blessing.  That  much  is  certain, 
according  to  my  idea:  he  will  not  be  of  evil  to  us  all!'' 

With  that  she  took  the  two  children  into  the  ad- 
joining bedchamber,  next  to  the  large  one,  and  put 
them  to  bed.  Dietegen,  who  was  so  sleepy  that  he 
scarcely  noticed  what  'was  going  on  around  him, 
instinctively  went  through  the  motions  for  disrobing. 
But  since  he  was  already,  in  a  manner  of  speaking, 
in  his  shirt,  his  drowsy  motions  made  such  a  ludicrous 
impression,  especially  upon  the  little  girl,  that  she, 
already  under  her  blanket,*  could  not  help  screaming 
with  mirth:  "Oh,  just  watch  the  comical  shirtmanni- 
kin!  He  is  always  trying  to  take  off  his  spenser  and 
boots,  and  yet  he  hasn't  any!"  Her  mother,  too, 
had  to  smile  and  said  to  the  boy:  "In  God's  name, 
go  to  bed  in  your  poor  sinner's  shift!  My  poor  boy, 
that  shift  is  quite  new  and  really  of  good  linen.  Truly, 
these  wicked  people  of  Ruechenstein  at  least  do  their 
atrocities  with  a  certain  amount  of  decency." 

In  saying  which  she  wrapped  the  two  little  ones  up 
well  in  their  blankets,  and  could  not  forbear  to  kiss 
both  of  them,  so  that  Dietegen  was  really  better  off 
than  he  had  ever  been  in  his  whole  life.     But  his  eyes 


DIETEGEN  109 

were  already  tightly  closed  and  his  soul  in  deep  sleep. 
"But  now  he  has  not  said  his  prayers  at  all/'  whispered 
Kuengolt  in  sorrow.  Her  mother  replied:  "Then 
you  will  do  it  for  both  of  you,  my  Httle  daughter!" 
and  left  the  two.  And  indeed,  the  girl  now  said  the 
Lord's  prayer  twice,  once  for  herself,  once  for  her  new 
bedfellow.  And  then  quiet  reigned  in  the  httle 
chamber. 

Some  time  after  midnight  Dietegen  woke  up,  be- 
cause only  now  his  neck  had  begun  to  pain  him  from 
the  unfriendly  rope  of  the  hangman.  The  chamber 
was  flooded  with  moonlight,  but  he  was  perfectly 
unable  to  recall  where  he  was  and  how  he  had  come 
there.  Merely  this  he  was  conscious  of,  that  he 
aside  from  his  sore  throat,  was  far  better  of!  than  ever 
before  in  his  young  life.  The  window  stood  open, 
a  spring  outside  murmured  softly,  and  the  silver  night 
blew  whisperingly  through  the  tree  tops;  over  them  all 
the  moon  shone  in  gentle  radiance.  All  this  to  him 
was  wondrous,  since  he  had  never  before  seen  the 
solitude  of  the  forest,  neither  by  day  nor  by  night. 
He  gazed  sleepily,  he  Hstened,  and  finally  he  assumed 
a  sitting  posture.  Then  he  perceived  next  to  him  on 
the  couch  little  Kuengolt,  the  moon's  beams  playing 
right  over  her  small  face.  She  lay  still,  but  was 
broad  awake,  since  excitement  and  joy  would  not 
let  her  sleep.  Because  of  that  her  eyes  were  opened 
to  their  full  extent,  and  her  mouth  was  smiling  when 
Dietegen  peered  into  her  face. 


no  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

"Why  don't  you  sleep?  You  ought  to  sleep," 
said  the  girl.  But  he  then  complained  of  the  pain 
at  his  throat.  At  once  little  Kuengolt  weaved  her 
tender  arms  around  his  neck  and  full  of  pity  put  her 
own  cheeks  against  his.  And  really  it  soon  seemed 
to  him  that  his  pain  subsided  under  such  sympathetic 
treatment.  And  then  they  began  to  chat  in  a  low 
voice.  Dietegen  was  asked  to  tell  about  himself. 
But  he  was  reticent  because  there  was  not  much  to 
tell  that  was  pleasant,  and  about  the  misery  of  his 
childhood  he  also  was  not  able  to  say  a  great  deal, 
since  no  contrasts  were  within  his  ken,  with  the  single 
exception  of  that  evening.  Suddenly,  however,  he 
recalled  his  pleasant  sport  with  the  crossbow,  which 
had  slipped  his  mind  before,  and  so  he  told  the  little 
girl  all  about  the  Jew,  and  how  that  one  had  been  the 
cause  of  his  imprisonment  and  unjust  sentence,  but 
also  about  how  he  had  taken  great  delight  in  shooting 
with  the  crossbow,  for  over  an  hour,  and  how  he  now 
longed  for  just  such  a  weapon. 

"My  father  has  crossbows  and  weapons  of  every 
type  in  plenty,"  commented  Kuengolt  breathlessly. 
"And  you  may  start  in  to-morrow  and  shoot  all  you 
wish." 

And  then  she  set  out  to  tell  him  about  all  the  nice 
things  in  the  house,  and  she  included  in  these  her 
own  pretty  knicknacks,  locked  up  in  a  casket,  espe- 
cially two  golden  "rainbow"  keys,  a  necklace  of 
amber,  a  volume  full  of  holy  legends,  illustrated  with 


DIETEGEN  iii 

pictures  showing  saints  in  their  beautiful  vestments, 
and  also  a  multicolored  medallion  in  which  sat  a 
Mother  of  God  clad  in  gold  brocade  and  vermilion 
silk,  and  covered  with  a  tiny  round  glass.  Also, 
she  enumerated  further,  she  owned  a  silver-gilt  spoon, 
with  a  quaintly  turned  handle,  but  with  that  she 
would  be  permitted  to  eat  only  when  she  was  grown 
up  and  had  a  husband  of  her  own.  And  when  it 
came  to  her  wedding  she  would  get  the  bridal  jewelry 
of  her  mother,  together  with  her  blue  brocade  dress, 
which  was  so  thick  and  heavy  that  it  stood  up  without 
any  one  being  inside  of  it.  Then  she  kept  still  a  short 
while,  but  pressing  her  bedfellow  more  closely  against 
her  heart,  she  said  in  a  very  low  voice:  "Listen, 
Dietegen!" 

''Well,  what  is  it?"  he  answered. 

"You  must  be  my  husband  when  we  are  big.  For 
you  belong  to  me.    Will  you,  of  your  own  free  will?'' 

"Why,  yes,"  he  replied. 

"Then  you  must  shake  hands  on  it,"  she  remarked, 
in  a  peremptory  voice.  He  did  so,  and  after  this 
binding  promise  the  two  children  finally  fell  asleep 
and  did  not  wake  till  the  sun  stood  high  in  the  heavens. 
For  the  kind  mother  had  purposely  refrained  from 
rousing  them,  so  that  the  poor  boy  should  have  a 
thorough  rest. 

But  now  at  last  she  cautiously  crept  into  the  little 
chamber,  bearing  on  her  arm  a  complete  boy's  suit 
of  clothing.    Two  years  before  her  own  son  had  been 


1 1 2  SELD  WYLA  FOLKS 

killed  by  the  fall  of  an  oak  tree,  and  the  clothes  of  this 
boy  of  hers,  although  he  had  been  Dietegen's  senior 
by  a  whole  year,  were  likely  to  fit  him,  since  he  was 
just  his  size.  And  it  was  her  lost  boy's  holiday  attire, 
which  in  a  saddened  spirit  she  had  preserved.  There- 
fore she  had  risen  with  the  sun,  in  order  to  remove 
from  the  doublet  some  gay  ribbons  ornamenting  it, 
and  to  sew  up  the  slits  in  the  sleeves  which  let  the 
silk  lining  peep  forth.  Her  tears  had  flown  anew  in 
doing  this  labor,  when  she  saw  the  scarlet  silken  lining 
that  glinted  from  below  the  black  jerkin  gradually 
disappear  from  view,  as  jocund  spring  vanished  in 
sorrow,  and  become  of  a  piece  with  the  black  trunks. 
The  tears  were  shed  because  of  the  death  of  her  own 
dear  boy,  but  a  sweet  consolation  tinctured  her  soul 
since  Fate  now  had  sent  her  such  a  handsome,  lovable 
little  fellow,  one  who  had  been  snatched,  so  to  speak, 
out  of  Death's  hard  grasp,  and  whom  she  now  could 
clothe  in  the  habiliments  of  her  own  son.  And  it  was 
not  from  haste  or  fear  of  the  task  that  she  left  the 
gay  silken  lining  under  the  sable  outer  covering,  but 
on  purpose,  as  the  hidden  fire  of  affection  in  her  bosom 
moved  her.  For  she  was  of  those  who  mean  better 
by  their  familiars  than  they  dare  show  openly.  If 
the  new  boy  proved  worthy  of  it,  she  vowed  to  herself, 
she  would  open  the  seams  of  the  sHts  again,  for  his 
joy  and  pride.  Anyway,  on  workadays  Dietegen 
was  to  wear  this  suit  but  for  a  few  days,  until  one  of 
stronger  and  more  suitable  material  should  have  been 


DIETEGEN  113 

made  for  him  to  measure  by  the  tailor,  one  that  he 
could  expose  to  rough  usage  during  his  ordinary 
occupations.  But  while  she  instructed  the  boy  how 
to  put  on  this  fine  suit  of  a  kind  to  which  he  was 
quite  unused,  Httle  Kuengolt  had  slipped  out  of  bed, 
and  in  a  spirit  of  childish  mischief  had  got  hold  of 
the  gallows  shift,  which  she  now  put  on  and  was 
stalking  gravely  in  about  the  room,  trailing  its  tail 
behind  her  on  the  floor.  With  that  she  kept  her 
little  hands  folded  behind  her,  as  though  they  were 
tied  by  the  hangman.  Then  she  sang  aloud:  "I  am 
a  miserable  sinner  now,  and  even  lack  my  hose,  I 
trow."  At  this  the  kindly  woman  fell  into  a  great 
affright,  grew  deadly  pale,  and  said  in  a  low,  soft 
voice:  "For  our  Savior's  sake,  who  is  teaching  you  such 
wicked  jokes,  my  child?"  And  she  seized  the  ominous 
shift  from  the  little  girl's  hands,  who  smiled  at  this, 
but  Dietegen  took  it,  being  wroth  at  the  scene,  and  tore 
it  into  a  score  of  pieces. 

Now  that  the  two  children  were  dressed  they  were 
taken  along  for  breakfast  in  the  adjoining  room. 
Early  in  the  morning  bread  had  been  baked,  and 
with  the  milk  soup  the  little  ones  received  each  a 
fresh  loaf  of  cummin  seed  bread,  and  in  place  of  the 
one  sweet  roll  which  on  ordinary  days  was  specially 
baked  for  Kuengolt,  there  were  two  that  day,  and  the 
Httle  girl  would  have  it  that  the  boy  received  the 
larger  of  them.  Dietegen  ate  without  urging  all  that 
was  offered  him,  just  as  though  he  had  returned  to 


114  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

his  father's  house  after  an  enforced  stay  with  evil 
strangers.  But  he  was  very  still  throughout,  and  he 
keenly  observed  everything  around  him :  the  pleasant 
mild  woman  who  treated  him  like  her  own  son,  the 
sunny,  light  room,  and  the  comfortable  furniture  with 
which  it  was  fitted  up.  And  after  having  eaten 
his  breakfast  with  a  good  appetite,  he  continued  these 
observations,  noticing  that  the  walls  were  wainscoted 
with  smooth  pine,  and  higher  up  decorated  with 
painted  wreaths  and  flowers,  and  that  the  leaded 
window  panes  showed  the  arms  both  of  husband  and 
wife.  When  he  also  carefully  inspected  the  handsome 
closets  and  the  sideboard  with  its  load  of  shining 
vessels  and  tableware,  he  suddenly  remembered  the 
dingy  silver  jug  that  had  almost  brought  him  to  his 
death,  and  the  cheerless  house  of  the  beadle  in  Ruechen- 
stein,  and  then,  afraid  that  he  should  have  to  return 
there  again,  he  asked  with  a  tremor  in  his  voice: 
"Must  I  now  return  home?  But  I  don't  know  the 
way." 

"There  is  no  need  of  your  knowing  it,"  said  the 
housewife,  moved  by  his  evident  dread,  and  she 
stroked  his  smooth  chin.  "Have  you  not  yet  noticed 
that  you  are  to  remain  with  us?  Go  along  with  him 
now,  my  little  Kuengolt,  and  show  him  the  house  and 
the  woods,  and  everything  else.  But  do  not  go  too 
far  away!" 

Then  Kuengolt  took  the  boy  by  the  hand,  and 
first  led  him  into  the  forester's  armory  where  he  kept 


DIETEGEN  115 

his  weapons.  And  there  hung  seven  magnificent 
crossbows  and  arquebuses,  and  spears  and  javelins 
for  the  chase,  hangers  and  dirks,  and  also  the  long 
sword  of  the  master  of  the  house  which  stood  in  the 
corner  by  itself.  Dietegen  examined  all  this,  silently 
but  with  gleaming  eyes,  and  Kuengolt  mounted  a 
chair  to  take  down  several  of  the  finest  crossbows 
from  the  wall,  which  she  handed  him  so  that  he  could 
look  them  over  more  at  leisure,  and  he  was  delighted 
with  these,  for  they  showed  ornaments  inlaid  in  ivory 
or  mother-of-pearl,  daintily  done  by  some  expert 
artisan.  The  boy  admired  it  all,  in  a  silent  sort  of 
ecstasy,  about  as  would  a  rather  talented  prentice  in 
the  studio  of  a  great  master  painter  while  the  latter 
might  be  absent  from  home.  But  Kuengolt's  quick 
proposal  to  have  him  try  his  marksmanship  outside 
in  a  meadow  could  not  be  realized  at  the  time,  because 
the  bolts  and  arrows  were  locked  away  in  a  separate 
receptacle.  But  to  make  up  for  that  she  gave  him 
a  fine  hunting  spear  to  hold  so  that  he  should  have 
a  weapon  of  some  kind  to  take  along  into  the  green- 
woods. Near  the  house  she  showed  him  a  hedged-in 
space  full  of  deer  and  game,  in  which  the  town  con- 
stantly kept  its  reserve  of  stock,  so  that  at  no  time 
there  should  be  lack  of  venison  and  other  fine  roasts 
for  public  or  private  banquets.  The  girl  coaxed 
several  roes  and  stags  to  come  to  her  at  the  hedge, 
and  this  was  astonishing  to  Dietegen,  for  so  far  he  had 
seen  such  animals  only  when  dead.    With  his  spear, 


ii6  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

therefore,  he  stood  attentive,  his  eyes  fixed  on  these 
pretty  denizens  of  the  woods,  and  could  not  get 
his  fill  of  watching  them.  Eagerly  he  held  out  his 
hand  to  fondle  a  finely  antlered  stag,  and  when  the 
latter  shyly  bounded  aside  and  leisurely  trotted  off, 
the  boy  scurried  after  him  with  a  joyous  halloo,  and 
ran  and  jumped  with  the  animal  around  in  a  wide 
circle.  It  was  perhaps  the  first  time  in  his  life  that 
he  could  use  his  young  limbs  in  this  way,  and  when  he 
felt  how  his  tendons  stretched  with  the  violent  exercise 
and  how  he  was  able  to  race  with  the  swift  stag,  the 
latter  apparently  taking  as  much  pleasure  in  the 
sport  as  Dietegen  himself,  a  feeling  of  untried  strength 
and  agility  first  woke  within  him. 

But  as  they  later  on  stepped  into  the  domain  of  the 
deep  forest,  high  up  on  the  hill,  the  boy  resumed  once 
more  his  usual  air  of  thoughtful  quiet  and  deliber- 
ation. Up  there  mighty  trees  grew  closer  together, 
leaving  hardly  a  fragment  of  sky  to  discover  from 
below  —  tall  pine  and  gnarled  oak,  spreading  lindens, 
beeches,  maple  and  spruce,  all  growing  in  a  semi- 
darkness  where  the  sunlight  seldom  pierced.  Red 
squirrels  glided  spectrelike  from  trunk  to  trunk, 
woodpeckers  hammered  incessantly  for  their  fare, 
high  up  birds  of  prey  shrilly  pursued  their  quarry 
in  the  open,  and  a  thousand  forest  mysteries  were 
dimly  at  work.  Below,  in  the  dense  underbrush, 
hares  and  foxes,  deer  and  smaller  game  were  waging 
war,  and  song  birds  twittered  or  warbled  in  a  chorus 


DIETEGEN  117 

of  multiform  sound.  Kuengolt  laughed  and  laughed 
because  the  boy  knew  nothing  of  all  these  secret 
doings  in  the  forest,  although  he  had  grown  up  in  a 
mountain  fastness  surrounded  by  the  very  life  of  the 
woods,  but  she  at  once  began  to  explain  to  him  these 
things  of  which  he  was  so  profoundly  ignorant.  She 
showed  him  the  hawk  and  his  nest,  the  cuckoo  in  his 
retreat,  and  the  gay-clad  woodpecker  as  he  was  just 
clambering  up  a  thick  trunk  with  bark  promising  him 
rich  harvest.  And  about  all  these  things  he  was 
highly  amazed,  and  wondered  that  trees  and  bushes 
should  bear  so  many  names,  and  that  each  should 
differ  from  the  next.  For  he  had  not  even  known  the 
hazelnut  bush  or  the  whortleberry  in  their  haunts. 
They  came  to  a  rushing  brook,  and  disturbed  by  their 
steps,  a  snake  made  off  into  the  water,  and  the  girl 
seized  the  spear  in  the  boy's  hand  and  wanted  to  stick 
it  into  the  rocky  nook.  But  when  Dietegen  saw  that 
she  was  going  to  blunt  or  break  the  edge  of  the  finely 
tempered  weapon,  he  at  once  took  it  out  of  her  fingers, 
saying  that  she  might  damage  the  spear. 

'^That  is  well  done,"  suddenly  came  the  voice  of 
the  chief  forester,  his  patron;  "you  will  prove  a  help 
to  me."  With  a  gamekeeper  he  stood  behind  the 
two  children.  For  the  noise  of  the  rushing  water 
had  drowned  in  their  ears  all  other  noise.  The  game- 
keeper bore  in  his  hand  a  woodcock,  just  shot,  for  the 
two  had  gone  forth  early  in  the  morning.  Dietegen 
was  permitted  to  hang  the  stately  bird  to  the  tip  of 


ii8  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

his  spear,  flinging  it  over  his  shoulder,  so  that  the 
spread  wings  of  the  bird  enveloped  him,  and  the  for- 
ester gazed  with  approval  upon  the  handsome  young- 
ster, and  made  up  his  mind  to  make  an  all-around 
woodsman  of  him. 

Just  now,  though,  he  was  to  learn  somewhat  the 
difficult  arts  of  reading  and  writing,  and  for  that 
purpose  was  obliged  to  walk  every  day  to  town  with 
the  little  girl;  there  in  a  convent  and  in  a  monastery 
the  two  were  taught  as  much  of  these  mysteries  as 
seemed  good  for  them.  But  his  chief  lessons  Dietegen 
had  from  the  little  girl  herself  when  coming  and  going 
from  town,  Kuengolt  delighting  in  informing  him  as 
to  all  that  was  going  on  in  the  world,  so  far  at  least 
as  she  herself  knew,  and  more  particularly  as  to  the 
ordinary  things  of  life,  as  to  which  Dietegen  had  been 
left  in  deplorable  ignorance  by  his  former  taskmaster, 
the  beadle. 

But  the  little  instructress  was  in  her  way  a  ruthless 
practical  joker,  and  followed  a  unique  method  of  her 
own  in  teaching  the  boy.  She  exaggerated,  distorted 
or  plainly  misstated  the  facts  as  to  most  things  in 
talking  to  her  pupil,  and  abused  grossly  the  credulity 
and  trustfulness  of  the  boy,  merely  for  her  amuse- 
ment, and  she  did  this  as  to  most  things.  In  this  she 
showed  a  wonderful  gift  of  invention,  an  exuberant 
fancy  of  the  rarest.  When  Dietegen  then  had  accepted 
her  fictions,  and  would  perhaps  express  his  wonder 
at  them,  she  would  shame  him  with  the  cool  state- 


DIETEGEN       >  119 

ment  that  not  a  single  word  had  been  true.  She 
would  scornfully  blame  him  for  believing  such  palp- 
able untruths,  and  then,  with  a  show  of  infinite 
wisdom,  she  would  tell  him  the  real  facts.  Then  he 
would  redden  under  her  sarcastic  remarks,  and  would 
endeavor  to  avoid  her  pitfalls,  but  only  until  she  saw 
fit  to  make  sport  of  him  once  more.  However,  in 
the  course  of  time  Dietegen's  powers  of  judging  facts 
began  to  widen,  and  he  ceased  to  be  so  gullible,  and 
this  another  boy  who  attempted  to  emulate  Kuengolt^s 
example  found  out  to  his  sorrow.  For  Dietegen 
simply  slapped  his  face  when  he  came  out  with  a 
particularly  outrageous  whopper. 

Kuengolt,  rather  taken  aback  at  witnessing  this 
castigation,  was  curious  to  ascertain  whether  this 
wrath  under  given  circumstances  would  also  turn 
against  herself.  She  made  a  test  on  the  spot,  feeding 
him  with  some  of  her  choicest  fairy  tales.  But  from 
her  he  accepted  everything  without  a  murmur,  and 
so  she  continued  her  peculiar  method  of  instruction. 
At  last,  though,  she  discovered  that  he  had  acquired 
enough  independence  of  thought  and  a  large  enough 
stock  of  knowledge  to  enable  him  to  play  with  her 
himself.  He  would  answer  her  inventions  with 
counterinventions,  and  would  argue  from  her  non- 
sensical statements  in  such  shrewd  fashion  as  to  turn 
her  first  doctrines  into  ridicule,  and  he  would  do  this 
in  perfect  good-nature,  proving  the  untenableness 
of   her  own   theories.    Then   she   came   to   the   con- 


120  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

elusion  that  it  was  time  to  give  up  her  nonsense. 
But  in  place  of  that  amusement  she  now  indulged  in 
another.  Namely,  she  began  to  tyrannize  over  him 
most  unmercifully.  It  grew  so  that  it  was  almost 
worse  than  things  had  been  with  the  beadle's  wife. 
His  servitude  was  deplorable.  She  made  him  fetch 
and  carry  during  all  his  spare  time.  He  had  to  haul 
and  hoist  and  labor  for  her  in  a  truly  ridiculous  man- 
ner. She  constantly  required  his  presence  about 
her;  he  had  to  bring  her  water,  shake  the  trees,  dig 
in  the  garden,  crack  open  nuts  after  getting  them  for 
her,  hold  her  Httle  basket,  and  even  to  brush  and 
comb  her  hair  she  wanted  to  train  him  —  only  that 
is  where  he  drew  a  line.  But  then  he  was  scolded 
by  her  for  refusing  this,  and  when  her  mother  took 
sides  against  her  she  became  quite  obstreperous  with 
the  latter  as  well. 

But  Dietegen  did  not  pay  her  back  in  her  own  coin, 
never  lost  his  patience  with  her,  and  was  always 
equally  submissive  and  indulgent  with  her.  Her 
mother  saw  that  with  vast  pleasure,  and  to  reward 
him  for  his  fine  conduct  she  treated  the  boy  like  her 
own  son,  and  gave  him  all  those  finer  hints  and  that 
almost  imperceptible  guidance  and  advice  which  else 
are  only  saved  for  children  of  one's  own,  and  by  means 
of  which  children  finally  acquire  without  knowing  it 
those  habits  and  better  manners  which  are  commonly 
comprised  under  the  name  of  a  careful  education. 
Of  course,  she  herself  gained  in  a  way  from  this;   for 


DIETEGEN  121 

her  own  daughter  thus  acquired  unconsciously  many 
of  her  lessons,  Dietegen  being  there  as  a  sort  of  mirror 
of  what  was  expected  of  her.  Truly,  it  was  almost 
comical  how  little  Kuengolt  in  her  restless  temper- 
ament veered  and  shifted  constantly  between  imi- 
tating her  better  model  or  else  becoming  jealous  and 
wroth  and  scorning  it  for  the  time.  On  one  occasion 
she  became  so  excited  as  to  stab  at  him  with  all  her 
might  with  a  sharp  pair  of  scissors.  But  Dietegen 
caught  her  wrist  quickly,  and  without  hurting  her 
or  showing  any  anger  he  made  her  drop  them.  This 
little  scene  which  her  mother  had  espied  from  a 
hiding-place,  moved  the  latter  so  strongly  that  she 
came  forth,  took  the  boy  in  her  arms,  and  kissed  him. 
Pale  and  excited  the  girl  herself  left  the  room  with 
out  a  word.  "Go,  follow  her,  my  son,"  whispered 
the  mother,  "and  reconcile  her.  You  are  her  good 
angel." 

Dietegen  did  as  bidden.  He  found  her  behind  the 
house  and  under  a  lilac  bush.  She  was  weeping  wildly 
and  tearing  her  amber  necklace,  trying,  in  fact,  to 
throttle  herself  by  means  of  it,  and  stamping  on  the 
scattered  beads  on  the  ground.  When  Dietegen 
approached  her  and  wanted  to  seize  her  hands,  she 
cried  with  a  great  sob:  "Nobody  but  I  may  kiss  you. 
For  you  belong  to  me  alone.  You  are  mine,  my 
property.  I  alone  have  freed  you  from  that  horrid 
coffin,  in  which  without  me  you  would  have  remained 
forever." 


122  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

As  the  boy  grew  up  marvelously,  becoming  hand- 
somer and  more  manly  with  every  day,  the  forester 
declared  at  breakfast  one  morning  that  the  time  was 
now  ripe  to  take  him  along  into  the  woods  and  let 
him  learn  the  difficult  craft  of  the  huntsman.  Thus 
he  was  taken  from  the  side  of  Kuengolt,  and  spent 
now  all  his  time,  from  dawn  until  nightfall,  with  the 
men,  in  forest,  moor  and  heath.  And  now  indeed 
his  limbs  began  to  stretch  that  it  was  a  pleasure  to 
watch  him.  Swift  and  limber  like  a  stag,  he  obeyed 
each  word  or  hint,  and  ran  whither  he  was  sent.  Silent 
and  docile,  he  was  forever  where  wanted;  carried 
weapons  and  tackle,  gear  and  utensils,  helped  spread 
the  nets,  leaped  across  trenches  and  morass,  and  spied 
out  the  whereabouts  of  the  game.  Soon  he  knew  the 
tracks  of  all  the  animals,  knew  how  to  imitate  the 
call  of  the  birds,  and  before  any  one  expected  it,  he 
had  a  young  wildboar  run  into  his  spear.  Now,  too, 
the  forester  gave  him  a  crossbow.  With  it  he  was 
every  day,  every  hour  almost,  exercising  his  skill, 
aiming  at  the  target,  shooting  at  living  objects  as 
well.  In  a  word,  when  Dietegen  was  but  sixteen, 
he  was  already  an  expert  woodsman  who  might  be 
placed  anywhere,  and  it  would  happen  now  and  then 
that  his  patron  sent  him  out  with  a  number  of  his 
men  to  guard  the  municipal  woods  and  head  the 
chase. 

Dietegen,  therefore,  might  be  seen  not  alone  with 
the  crossbow  on  his  back,  but  also  with  pen  and  ink- 


DIETEGEN  123 

horn  in  his  girdle  upon  the  mountain  side,  and  with 
his  keen  watchful  eyes  and  his  unfailing  memory  he 
was  a  great  help  to  his  fosterfather.  And  since  with 
every  day  he  became  more  reliable  and  useful,  the 
master  forester  learned  to  love  him  better  all  along, 
and  used  to  say  that  the  boy  must  in  the  end  become 
a  full-fledged,  an  honorable  and  martial  citizen. 

It  could  under  these  circumstances  not  be  otherwise 
than  that  Dietegen  on  his  part  was  devoted  soul  and 
body  to  the  forester.  For  there  is  no  attachment 
like  that  of  the  youth  for  the  mature  man  of  whom 
he  knows  that  he  is  doing  his  best  to  teach  him  all 
the  secrets  of  his  craft,  and  whom  he  holds  to  be  his 
unapproached  model. 

The  chief  forester  was  a  man  of  about  forty;  tall 
and  well-built,  with  broad  shoulders  and  of  handsome 
appearance  and  noble  carriage.  His  hair  of  golden 
sheen  was  already  lightly  sprinkled  with  silver,  but 
his  complexion  was  ruddy,  and  his  blue  eyes  shone 
frank,  open  and  full  of  fire.  In  his  younger  days, 
too,  he  had  been  among  the  wildest  and  merriest  of 
Seldwyla's  choice  spirits,  and  many  were  the  quaint 
and  original  quips  he  had  perpetrated  at  that  time  of 
his  life.  But  when  he  had  won  his  young  wife,  he 
altered  instantly,  and  since  then  he  had  been  the 
soberest  and  the  most  sensible  man  in  the  world. 
For  his  dear  wife  was  of  a  most  delicate  habit,  and  of 
a  kindness  of  heart  that  could  not  defend  itself,  and 
although  by  no  means  without  a  spirit  and  a  wit  of  her 


124  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

own,  she  would  have  been  unable  to  meet  unkindness 
with  a  sharp  tongue.  A  wife  of  ready  wit  and  pug- 
nacity would  probably  have  spurred  this  naturally 
sprightly  man  on  to  further  doings,  but  in  contest 
with  the  graceful  feebleness  of  this  delicate  wife  of 
his  he  behaved  like  the  truly  strong.  He  watched 
over  her  as  over  the  apple  of  his  eye,  did  only  those 
things  which  gave  her  pleasure,  and  after  his  busy 
day's  work  remained  gladly  at  his  own  hearth. 

At  the  most  important  festivities  of  the  town  only, 
three  or  four  times  a  year,  he  went  among  the  council- 
men  and  other  citizens,  led  them  with  his  fresh  vigor 
in  deliberation  and  at  the  festive  board,  and  after 
drinking  one  after  the  other  of  the  great  guzzlers 
under  the  table,  he  would,  as  the  last  of  the  doughty 
champions,  rise  upright  from  his  seat,  stride  quietly 
out  of  the  council  chamber,  and  then  with  a  jolly 
smile  walk  uphill  to  his  forest  home. 

But  the  chief  comedy  would  always  come  the  next 
day.  For  then  he  would  waken,  after  all,  with  a  head 
that  hummed  like  a  beehive,  and  then  he  would  rouse 
himself  fully,  half  morosely,  half  with  a  leonine  jovial 
humor  that  indeed  had  the  dimensions  of  a  lion  when 
compared  with  the  proverbial  distemper  of  the  average 
toper.  Early  he  would  then  show  up  at  breakfast, 
the  sun  shining  with  strength  upon  his  naked  scalp, 
and  ignoring  his  symptoms,  he  would  jest  and  make 
fun  of  himself  and  his  achievements  of  the  previous 
night.    His  wife,   then,   always  hungering  after  her 


DIETEGEN  125 

husband's  humor,  he  being  usually  rather  reticent, 
would  then  answer  his  sallies  with  a  merry  laughter, 
so  bell-like  and  wholesouled  as  one  would  never  have 
suspected  in  a  being  so  demure  as  she.  His  children 
would  laugh,  also  his  gamekeepers  and  huntsmen, 
and  lastly  his  servants.  And  in  that  way  the  whole 
day  would  pass.  Everything  that  day  would  be  done 
with  a  bright  smile  and  a  salvo  of  hearty  laughter. 
And  always  the  chief  forester  leading  them  all,  han- 
dling his  axe,  lifting  heavy  weights,  doing  the  work 
of  three  ordinary  men.  On  such  a  day  it  was  once 
that  fire  broke  out  in  the  town.  High  above  burning 
roofs  a  poor  old  woman,  in  her  frail  wooden  balcony, 
forgotten  and  disregarded,  was  shrilly  crying  and 
moaning  for  help  from  a  fiery  death,  and  above  her 
shoulder  her  tame  starling  went  through  the  drollest 
of  antics,  likewise  claiming  attention.  Nobody  could 
think  of  a  way  to  save  mistress  and  bird.  The  flames 
came  nearer  and  ever  nearer.  But  our  chief  forester 
climbed  up  to  a  protruding  coping  on  a  high  wall  facing 
the  old  woman's  nook,  a  spot  where  he  stood  like  a 
rock.  Then  with  herculean  strength  he  pulled  up 
a  long  ladder  to  him,  turned  it  over  and  balanced  it 
neatly  until  it  touched  the  window  where  the  old 
hag  was  struggling  for  breath.  He  placed  it  securely 
within  the  opening,  on  the  sill,  and  then  he  strode 
across  it,  firm  and  unafraid,  back  and  forth,  carrying 
the  ancient  woman  safely  across  his  shoulder,  and  the 
stuttering  starling  on  his  head,  the    greedily  licking 


126  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

flames  and  the  swirling  clouds  of  smoke  beneath  his 
feet.  And  all  this  he  did,  not  by  any  means  in  a 
heroic  pose,  as  something  dangerous  or  praiseworthy, 
but  as  though  it  were  a  harmless  joke,  smiling  and 
laughing. 

After  a  solid  piece  of  work  of  that  kind  he  would 
feast  with  his  family  in  jolly  style,  dishing  up  the  best 
the  house  afforded.  And  at  such  times  he  always 
was  particularly  tender  to  his  wife,  taking  her  on 
his  knee,  to  the  great  amusement  of  the  children,  and 
dubbing  her  his  "little  whitebird,"  and  his  "swallow," 
and  she,  her  arms  clasped  in  pleasurable  self-forget- 
fulness,  would  laughingly  watch  his  antics. 

On  a  day  like  that,  too,  he  once  arranged  for  a  dance, 
it  being  the  first  of  May.  He  had  a  musician  fetched 
from  town,  and  got  likewise  some  merry  young  folks 
to  increase  the  sport.  And  there  was  dancing  aplenty 
on  the  smooth  greensward  in  front  of  the  house,  right 
under  the  blooming  trees,  and  dainty  dancing  it  was. 
The  chief  forester  opened  the  merriment  with  his 
smiling  young  wife,  she  in  her  modest  finery  and  with 
her  girlish  shape.  As  they  made  the  first  steps,  she 
looked  over  her  shoulder  at  the  youngsters,  happy 
as  could  be,  and  tipping  her  foot  on  the  green  sod, 
impatient  to  be  off.  Just  then  Dietegen,  who  for 
much  of  the  time  past  had  kept  to  the  men  entirely, 
threw  a  glance  at  Kuengolt,  and  lo!  he  saw  that  she 
also  was  growing  up  to  be  a  handsome  woman,  as 
pretty  a  picture  as  her  mother.    Her  features  indeed 


Dl£TEGEN  127 

strongly  resembled  those  of  her  mother,  small,  regular 
and  charming.  But  in  her  figure  she  took  more  after 
her  father,  for  she  was  trimly  built  like  a  straight 
young  pine,  and  although  but  fourteen  her  bosom 
was  already  rounded  like  that  of  a  grown-up  damsel. 
Golden  curls  fell  in  a  shower  down  her  back  and  hid 
the  somewhat  angular  shoulderblades.  She  was  clad 
all  in  green,  wore  around  her  neck  her  amber  beads, 
and  on  her  head,  according  to  the  fashion  of  those 
days,  a  wreath  of  rosebuds.  Her  eyes  shone  pleasantly 
and  frankly  from  a  guileless  face,  but  once  in  a  while 
they  would  flash  wilfully  and  glide  casually  over  the 
row  of  youths  whose  eyes  hung  on  her  youthful  beauty, 
with  a  slightly  critical  bent,  and  at  last  rest  for  an 
instant  on  Dietegen,  then  turn  away  again.  Dietegen 
looked  as  though  hungering  for  recognition,  but  she 
only  once  more  glanced  back  at  him.  But  that  glance 
seemed  to  have  somewhat  embarrassed  her,  for  she 
stopped  to  arrange  her  hair,  while  he  flushed  deeply. 

That  indeed  was  the  first  time  when  they  two 
felt  they  were  no  longer  mere  children.  But  a  few 
minutes  later  they  met  and  found  themselves  partners 
in  a  country  dance,  hand  in  hand.  A  new  and  sweet 
sensation  pulsed  through  his  veins,  and  this  remained 
even  after  the  ring  of  dancers  had  again  been  broken. 

Kuengolt,  however,  had  still  the  same  feeling  re- 
garding him;  she  looked  upon  the  youth  as  upon  some- 
thing all  her  own,  as  something  belonging  to  her, 
and  of  which,  therefore,  one  may  be  sure  and  need  not 


128  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

guard  closely.  Only  once  in  a  while  she  would  send 
a  spying  glance  in  his  direction,  and  when  accident 
would  bring  him  into  the  close  neighborhood  of  another 
maiden,  there  would  also  be  Kuengolt  watching  him. 

Thus  innocent  pleasure  reigned  until  an  advanced 
hour  of  the  evening.  The  young  people  became  as 
sprightly  as  new-fledged  wood  pigeons,  and  soon  even 
excelled  in  their  merry  humor  their  bounteous  host, 
and  the  latter  on  his  part  delighted  to  pleasure  his 
amiable  young  wife,  while  soberly  encouraging  his 
youthful  guests  in  amusing  themselves.  She,  the 
wife,  was  serene  and  happy  as  sunlight  in  springtime. 
And  she  even  became  playful  enough  to  call  her  brawny 
husband  by  intimate  nicknames. 

But  harmless  and  decorous  as  all  this  was,  it  may 
be  that  the  citizens  of  other  towns  where  merriment 
was  not  the  natural  birthright,  as  in  the  case  of  the 
Seldwylians,  would  have  deemed  it  a  trifle  beyond  the 
proper  limits.  The  spiced  May  wine  which  was 
served  the  guests  had  been  mingled  in  its  elements 
according  to  ancient  usage,  but  just  as  in  their  joy 
itself  there  was  a  bit  too  much  license,  so  also  there 
was  a  trifle  too  much  honey  in  the  drink.  The  hands 
of  the  young  girls  lay  perhaps  somewhat  too  fre- 
quently upon  the  shoulders  of  the  youths,  and  now  and 
then,  without  meaning  any  harm,  a  couple  would 
quickly  kiss  and  part,  and  this  without  playing  at 
blind  man's  buff,  as  do  the  philistines  of  our  days 
under  similar  conditions.     In  short,  what  these  young 


DIETEGEN  129 

people  of  Seldwyla  lacked  in  their  diversion  was  the 
gift  of  attracting  without  seeming  to;  but  with  this 
gift,  on  the  other  hand,  Dietegen,  as  a  regulation 
Ruechensteiner,  was  plentifully  endowed.  For  al- 
though he  was  already  in  love,  he  fled  like  fire  from 
the  fondling  and  caressing  which  with  these  Seldwyla 
couples  was  by  now  rather  freely  indulged  in,  and 
preferred  to  keep  himself  out  of  the  danger  line.  All 
the  bolder  and  provoking  was  Kuengolt  who,  in  her 
childish  ignorance  and  after  the  manner  of  half-grown 
girls,  did  not  know  how  to  control  her  affections,  and 
who  went  to  look  up  the  frigid  youth.  She  discovered 
him  seated  in  the  shadow  of  a  group  of  darksome 
trees,  and  sat  down  beside  him,  seizing  his  hand  and 
playfully  twining  his  fingers.  When  he  submitted 
to  that  and  even,  gently  and  almost  in  a  fatherly 
way,  spun  her  ringlets  in  his  palm,  the  girl  at  once  put 
her  arms  around  his  neck  and  caressed  him  with  the 
innocence  but  also  with  the  abandon  of  a  child,  whereas 
in  truth  it  was  already  the  maiden  that  spoke  out  of 
her.  Dietegen,  however,  no  longer  a  child,  essayed 
to  use  his  maturer  judgment  for  both  of  them,  and  thus 
was  strenuously  trying  to  loosen  her  hold  on  him, 
when  his  fostermother,  the  chief  forester's  wife,  came 
joyously  running  up  to  the  bench,  and  noticed  with 
particular  pleasure  how  matters  stood  apparently. 

"That  is  right,"  she  cried,  "that  you,  too,  are  of 
accord,"  and  she  embraced  them  both  tightly.  "I 
hope  and  trust,  my  dearest  daughter,  that  you  will 


130  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

love  and  cherish  Dietegen  with  all  your  might.  He  is 
deserving  indeed,  my  child,  that  he  not  only  has 
found  a  new  home  in  our  house,  but  that  you,  too, 
will  give  him  a  home  in  your  little  heart.  And  you, 
dear  Dietegen,  will,  I  know,  at  all  times  be  a  true  and 
faithful  protector  and  guardian  to  my  little  Kuengolt. 
Never  leave  her  out  of  your  sight,  for  your  eyes  are 
keen  and  observant.'' 

"He  is  nobody's  but  mine,  and  has  been  for  long," 
said  Kuengolt  to  this,  and  she  kissed  him  boldly 
and  lightly  upon  the  cheek,  half  like  a  bride  and  half 
as  a  child  caresses  a  kitten  which  belongs  to  it.  But 
now  the  situation  for  the  poor  bashful  youth,  thus 
hemmed  in  between  mother  and  daughter,  became 
unbearable,  and  he  flushed  and  awkwardly  loosened 
their  combined  hold  of  him,  stepping  back  a  few  paces 
to  escape  their  blandishments.  But  Kuengolt,  in 
her  wilful  mood,  pursued  him  laughing,  and  when  in 
his  retreat  from  her  he  came  into  close  proximity 
to  the  pretty  mother,  the  latter  jestingly  caught  him 
by  the  arm,  saying:  "Here  he  is,  my  little  daughter, 
now  come  and  hold  him  fast." 

When  thus  entrapped  anew  by  them,  his  heart  beat 
excitedly,  and  while  finding  himself  thus  wooed,  so 
to  speak,  by  both  feminine  tempters,  he  at  the  same 
time  felt  intensely  his  lonesome  condition  in  the 
world.  The  odd  conceit  overcame  him  that  he  was 
a  lost  soul  shaken  from  the  tree  of  life,  which  while 
cherished  by  soft  hands,  was  nevertheless  to  be  forever 


DIETEGEN  131 

deprived  of  its  own  existence  and  individuality,  a 
state  of  mind  which  with  callow  youths  thus  beset 
may  be  more  frequent  than  commonly  supposed. 
Therefore,  a  prey  to  two  conflicting  emotions  equally 
powerful,  of  which  one  necessarily  excluded  the  other, 
his  strong  sense  of  personal  freedom  struggling  within 
his  breast  with  the  new-born  sentiment  of  tender 
regard,  he  stood  mute  and  trembling,  half  in  rebellion 
against  the  sudden  intimate  aggression  of  the  two 
women,  and  half  strongly  inclined  to  draw  the  young 
girl  into  his  arms  and  to  overwhelm  her  with  caresses. 
His  Ruechenstein  blood  was  against  him.  While  he 
loved  the  mother  with  a  wholesouled  and  most  grateful 
devotion,  her  thoughtless  encouragement  of  him  to 
play  a  lover's  part  towards  her  daughter  seemed  to  him 
strange  and  unbecoming.  He  looked  upon  himself 
as  really  Kuengolt's  property,  as  truly  belonging  to 
her  by  reason  of  her  having  saved  his  forfeited  life. 
But  at  the  same  time  he  felt  himself  seriously  respon- 
sible for  her  moral  conduct,  for  her  maiden  chastity 
and  her  correct  manners,  and  when  now  Kuengolt 
strove  to  kiss  him  on  the  mouth,  he  said  to  her,  in 
perfect  good  humor  but  withal  in  the  tone  of  a  crabbed 
schoolmaster:  "You  are  really  still  too  young  for 
things  of  that  kind.  This  is  not  suitable  for  your 
age.'' 

At  these  words  the  girl  paled  with  shame  and  annoy- 
ance. Without  another  syllable  she  turned  away 
and  joined  once  more  the   throng  of  merrymakers, 


132  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

where  she  danced  and  sprang  about  recklessly  a  few 
times,  and  then  sat  down  a  little  distance  away  by 
herself,  with  a  face  that  betrayed  clearly  how  hurt 
she  was  at  the  rebuff. 

The  chief  forester's  wife  smilingly  stroked  the 
strict  young  moralist's  cheek,  saying:  "Well,  well, 
you  are  certainly  very  strict.  But  the  more  faith- 
fully you  will  one  day  take  care  of  my  child.  Give 
me  your  promise  never  to  desert  her!  Only  don't 
forget,  we  Seldwyla  folk  are  all  of  us  rather  gay  and 
debonair,  and  it  is  possible  that  in  being  so  we  some- 
times do  not  think  enough  of  the  future." 

Dietegen's  eyes  grew  wet,  and  he  gave  her  his 
hand  in  solemn  vow.  Then  she  conducted  him  back 
to  the  others.  But  Kuengolt  turned  her  back  on  him, 
and  instead  in  real  grief  gazed  into  the  mild  May  night. 

He  on  his  part  now  marveled  at  himself.  Strange, 
now  of  a  sudden  this  girl  whom  but  a  minute  before 
he  had  misnomed  a  mere  child,  was  old  and  grown-up 
enough  to  cause  him,  the  moralizing  youth,  love  pangs. 
For  sad  and  confused  he  too  stood  now  aside  and 
felt  still  more  ashamed  than  the  girl  herself. 

"What  ails  you?  Why  do  you  look  so  sorrowful?" 
asked  the  forester,  when  he  in  the  best  humor  in  the 
world  now  approached  the  group.  But  Kuengolt 
at  the  question  broke  into  passionate  tears,  and  ex- 
claimed before  everybody:  "He  was  a  gift  to  me  by 
the  judges  when  he  was  really  nothing  but  a  poor 
lifeless  corpse,  and  I  have   reawakened  him  to  life. 


DIETEGEN  133 

And  therefore  he  has  no  right  to  sit  in  judgment  on 
me,  but  rather  I  alone  am  his  judge.  And  he  must  do 
everything  I  want,  and  when  I  love  to  kiss  him  it 
is  his  business  to  simply  keep  still  and  let  me  do  it." 

They  all  laughed  at  this  odd  statement,  but  the 
mother  took  Dietegen's  hand  and  led  him  to  the 
child,  saying:  "Come,  make  up  with  her  and  let  her 
kiss  you  once  more.  Later  on  you,  also,  shall  be  her 
master,  and  shall  do  as  you  see  fit  in  such  matters." 

Blushing  deeply  because  of  the  many  onlookers, 
Dietegen  offered  his  mouth  to  the  girl,  and  she  seized 
him  by  his  curls,  quite  in  a  frenzy,  and  kissed  him  hard, 
more  in  wrath  than  in  love,  and  then,  having  once 
more  thrown  him  a  look  that  betrayed  anger,  she 
quickly  turned  on  her  heels  and  dashed  away  in  such 
haste  that  her  golden  ringlets  fluttered  in  the  night 
air  and  in  passing  brushed  his  face. 

But  now  the  reluctant  fire  of  love  had  also  been 
kindled  in  his  own  young  soul,  and  soon  after  he  left 
the  throng  and  went  in  search  of  rash  Kuengolt, 
striding  rapidly  and  gazing  all  about  for  her.  At  last 
he  discovered  her  on  the  other  side  of  the  house  where 
she  sat  dreamily  at  the  well,  and  was  playing  with  the 
amber  beads  of  her  necklace.  Advancing  quickly 
he  seized  both  her  hands,  compressed  them  in  his 
vigorous  right,  and  then  laid  his  left  on  her  shoulder 
so  that  she  shuddered,  and  said:  "Listen,  child,  I 
shall  not  permit  you  to  trifle  with  me.  From  to-day 
on  you  are  just  as  much  my  own  property  as  I  am  yours, 


134  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

and  no  other  man  shall  have  you  living.  Keep  that 
in  mind  when  some  day  you  will  be  grown  up." 

"Oh,  you  big  old  man,"  she  murmured  slowly  and 
smiled  at  him,  but  pallor  had  overspread  her  features. 
"You  indeed  are  mine,  but  not  I  yours.  However, 
you  need  not  mind  that,  because  I  don't  think  I'll 
ever  let  you  go!" 

So  saying  she  rose  and  went,  without  first  looking 
at  her  old  playfellow  once  more,  over  to  the  other  side 
of  the  house. 

But  this  was  not  all.  The  forester's  wife  caught 
a  cold  in  the  suddenly  chilled  air  of  this  very  May 
night,  and  an  insidious  disease  grew  out  of  it  which 
carried  her  off  within  a  few  months.  On  her  deathbed 
she  grieved  much  about  her  husband  and  her  child, 
and  expressed  great  anxiety  on  their  behalf.  She 
also  denied  till  her  last  breath  the  real  cause  of  her 
illness  and  death,  deeming  it  scarcely  a  fit  thing  for 
a  housewife  and  a  mother  to  thus  go  out  of  life  merely 
because  of  a  surfeit  of  riotous  pleasure. 

But  while  she  thus  lay  lifeless  in  the  house,  all  that 
had  loved  her  mourned  for  her;  indeed  the  whole 
town  did  so,  for  she  had  not  had  a  single  enemy  in 
the  world.  Her  widowed  husband  wept  at  night 
in  his  bed,  and  at  daytime  he  spoke  never  a  word, 
but  only  from  time  to  time  stepped  up  to  the  coffin 
in  which  she  lay  so  still  and  peaceful,  looking  and 
looking  at  his  sweet  partner,  and  then,  shaking  his 
head,  slowly  walking  off  again. 


DIETEGEN  135 

He  had  a  heavy  wreath  of  young  pine  twigs  fashioned 
for  her  and  placed  it  on  the  bier.  Kuengolt  heaped 
a  perfect  mountain  of  wildflowers  on  top  of  that, 
and  thus  the  graceful  form  of  the  dead  was  borne 
down  from  the  hillside  to  the  church  below,  followed 
by  the  bereaved  family  and  a  crowd  of  relatives, 
friends  and  members  of  the  household. 

After  the  burial  the  chief  forester  took  all  the  mourn- 
ers to  the  tavern,  where  he  had  caused  a  bounteous 
meal  in  honor  of  the  dead  to  be  prepared,  according 
to  ancient  custom.  The  roast  venison  for  it,  a  capital 
roebuck,  and  two  fine  grouse,  he  had  shot  himself, 
grieving  all  the  while  at  the  loss  he  had  sustained. 
And  when  the  gorgeously  feathered  birds  now  appeared 
on  the  long  board  he  minded  him  again  of  the  dense 
grove  of  mighty  oak  and  maple,  high  up  on  the  moun- 
tain side,  in  which  she  had  sat  awaiting  his  return 
from  the  chase,  and  in  which  he,  his  heart  full  of  love 
of  her  who  now  rested  in  the  cool  ground,  had  many 
a  time  been  stalking  the  deer.  The  image  of  her 
stood  before  his  thoughts  like  life  itself.  But  yet  he 
was  not  to  be  left  long  to  brooding,  for  strict  laws 
of  custom  called  for  his  active  services  as  host  on  this 
occasion.  .When  the  claret  from  France  and  the 
golden  malmsey  had  been  uncorked  and  poured  into 
capacious  goblets,  and  the  heavy  table  been  loaded 
with  sweets  and  cakes  that  scented  the  precious  spices 
from  the  Indies,  the  guests  grew  lively  and  clamorous, 


136  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

and  he  had  to  propose  and  answer  many  a  toast, 
despite  his  sincere  mourning,  and  the  noise  soon 
drowned  the  still  voice  within  him.  Life  and  death 
were  twin  brothers  in  those  days  of  our  forbears. 

The  forester  was  seated  at  table  between  Kuengolt 
and  Dietegen,  and  these  two  because  of  his  tall  and 
broad-backed  person  were  unable  to  catch  a  look  of 
one  another  save  by  bending  over  or  behind  him,  and 
this  neither  of  them  wished  to  do  for  decency's  sake, 
for  they  were  the  only  ones  who  among  this  crowd 
of  buzzing  guests  remained  sad  and  serious.  Across 
the  board  from  him  sat  a  cousin,  a  lady  of  about 
thirty  named  Violande. 

This  lady  indeed  could  not  well  be  overlooked,  for 
she  wore  a  singular  costume,  one  which  did  not  seem 
fit  for  a  person  satisfied  with  her  lot,  a  person  living 
in  happy  circumstances,  but  rather  one  who  is  restless 
and  hollow  of  heart.  Yet  she  was  handsome,  and 
knew  well  how  to  impress  people  with  her  charms,  but 
ever  and  anon  something  selfish  and  mendacious  would 
flash  out  of  her  handsome  eyes  that  destroyed  all  these 
efforts  at  enforced  amiability. 

When  but  fourteen  she  had  already  been  in  love 
with  the  forester,  her  cousin,  merely  because  amongst 
those  young  men  that  came  before  her  vision  he  was 
the  best-looking  and  the  tallest  and  strongest.  He, 
however,  had  never  noticed  the  preference  shown  for 
him.  Indeed  he  had  not  given  a  thought  to  this 
overyoung  cousin  of  his,  since  his  serious  choice  lay 


DIETEGEN  137 

altogether  among  the  more  adult  persons  of  the  other 
sex,  and  wavered  among  several  of  these.  Full  of 
envy  and  jealousy,  this  unmature  cousin,  though, 
was  already  so  skilled  in  feminine  intrigue  as  to  be 
able  to  destroy  the  chances  of  two  or  three  young 
women  that  the  forester  had  looked  upon  with  favor, 
using  for  that  purpose  that  poisonous  weapon,  gossip 
and  backbiting.  Always  when  he  was  on  the  point 
of  proposing  to  a  beauty  that  had  won  his  regard,  this 
sly  half-woman  skillfully  understood  how  to  spread 
rumors  calculated  to  entangle  the  two,  fictitious 
words  uttered  by  one  or  the  other  seeming  to  show 
mutual  dislike,  or  something  equally  efficacious  in 
bringing  about  a  rupture.  If  her  designs  miscarried 
with  him,  why  then  she  spun  her  threads  so  as  to  make 
the  other  believe  that  the  swain  was  false  or  fickle, 
full  of  guile  or  not  dependable.  Thus  it  came  to  pass 
repeatedly  that  without  his  ever  discovering  the 
author  the  lady  of  his  suit  would  suddenly  swerve  and 
leave  him  out  in  the  cold,  while  another,  of  whom 
he  had  never  thought  in  that  connection,  would  as 
quickly  show  him  her  favor  —  all  owing  to  the  arts  of 
this  Macchiavell  in  petticoats.  And  then  impatiently 
and  disgustedly  he  would  turn  his  back  on  both  the 
willing  and  the  unwilling  and  plunge  once  more  for 
a  spell  into  his  easy  bachelordom.  In  this  way  it  was 
that,  one  after  the  other,  all  his  wooings  came  to 
nought,  until  he  at  last  happened  to  meet  the  mild 
and  amiable  lady  that  subsequently  became  his  spouse. 


138  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

This  one,  though,  kept  hold  of  him,  since  she  was 
just  as  guileless  as  he  himself,  and  all  the  artifices 
and  stratagems  of  the  little  witch  were  in  vain.  Yea, 
she  never  even  noticed  the  other's  cleverest  schemes, 
simply  because  she  kept  her  eyes  all  the  time  fixed 
upon  him  she  loved.  And  indeed  he  too  had  been 
grateful  to  her  for  her  singlemindedness,  and  held  her  all 
the  years  of  their  happy  union  as  a  jewel  of  rare  price. 
Violande,  however,  when  she  saw  the  man  whose 
love  she  had  aspired  to  married,  after  all,  to  another 
had  not  given  up  the  frequent  use  of  her  talent  for 
mischiefmaking,  for  fear  she  might  get  out  of  practice. 
The  older  she  grew  the  more  artistic  became  her 
endeavors  in  that  line,  but  without  success  for  herself, 
since  she  remained  a  spinster,  and  since  even  the 
men  themselves  whom  by  her  wiles  she  had  alienated 
from  other  women  turned  away  from  her  as  from  a 
dangerous  person,  feeling  in  their  hearts  only  contempt 
and  hatred  for  her.  Then  it  was  she  turned  her  face 
heavenwards,  giving  it  out  that  she  was  on  the  point 
of  entering  a  convent  and  becoming  a  nun.  But  she 
changed  her  mind  in  the  last  hour,  and  instead  of 
a  convent  entered  a  house  devoted  to  some  holy 
order,  but  such  a  one  as  would  permit  her,  in  case  the 
chance  of  becoming  a  wife  should  unexpectedly  present 
itself  to  her,  to  leave  it.  Thus  she  disappeared  for 
years  from  view,  since  she  was  in  the  habit  of  going 
from  one  town  to  another  at  short  intervals,  and  no- 
where   feeling  rested  or  contented.    Suddenly,   when 


DIETEGEN  139 

the  forester's  wife  was  lying  sick  to  death,  she  re- 
appeared again,  in  Seldwyla,  and  in  worldly  dress, 
and  so  it  had  come  about  that  here  she  was  as  one  of 
the  guests  at  this  funeral  celebration,  seated  opposite 
the  widower. 

She  put  restraint  on  her  restlessness,  and  now  and 
then  looked  modest  and  almost  childlike,  and  when 
the  women  rose  and  walked  about  in  couples,  the  while 
the  men  remained  seated  at  table  drinking  and  talk- 
ing, she  went  up  to  Kuengolt,  kissed  her  on  both 
cheeks,  and  made  friends  with  her.  The  half-grown 
girl  felt  honored  by  these  advances  of  a  semi-clerical 
woman,  one  who  had  apparently  great  knowledge 
of  the  world  and  had  been  about  a  good  deal,  and  so 
these  two  were  at  once  involved  in  a  long  and  intimate 
conversation,  as  though  they  had  known  each  other  all 
their  lives.  When  the  company  broke  up  Kuengolt 
asked  her  father  to  invite  Violande  to  his  house,  in 
order  to  manage  the  big  household,  a  task  for  which 
she  herself  felt  not  equal  and  entirely  too  young  and 
inexperienced.  The  forester  whose  mood  at  that 
moment  was  a  curious  compound  of  mourning  and 
vinous  elation,  and  whose  thoughts  still  belonged 
altogether  to  his  departed  wife,  raised  no  objection 
to  this  request,  although  he  did  not  care  much  for  his 
cousin  and  thought  her  a  queer  sort  of  person. 

Thus  in  a  day  or  two  Violande  made  her  formal 
entrance  into  the  widower's  house,  and  had  sense 
enough  to  take  the  place  of  the  dead  wife  at  the  hearth 


I40  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

with  judicious  modesty  and  not  without  a  spice  of 
sentimentality,  the  reflection  no  doubt  occurring  to 
her  that  here  she  was  at  last,  after  long  wanderings, 
where  the  desires  of  her  first  youth  seemed  at  last 
on  the  point  of  being  realized.  Without  undue  elation 
she  opened  the  closets  and  presses  of  her  predecessor, 
examining  in  detail  their  contents:  linen  and  home- 
spun cloth  piled  up  in  orderly  rows,  and  provisions  of 
every  kind  arranged  for  instant  or  occasional  use, 
such  as  preserved  fruit,  vegetables,  mushrooms,  stored 
away  in  carefully  tied-up  pots;  many  flitches  of  bacon 
and  salted  beef  and  pork,  smoked  hams  and  potted 
venison,  and  hundreds  of  bunches  of  flax  hung  up  to 
dry  under  the  ceilings  of  the  roof.  Her  heart  beat  at 
a  more  lively  gait  when  inspecting  all  these  domestic 
riches  speaking  so  eloquently  of  the  forester's  easy 
circumstances,  and  almost  tenderly  she  handled  these 
hundreds  of  vessels  and  receptacles,  dreaming  of  a 
near  housewifely  future.  And  in  this  peaceable 
frame  of  mind  she  remained  for  a  number  of  weeks. 
But  then  her  old  restlessness  seized  her  again.  It  had 
to  find  a  vent.  And  so  she  began  to  turn  everything 
topsy-turvy,  starting  with  the  pots  and  kettles,  each 
of  which  she  assigned  to  a  new  place,  mingling  the  big 
and  Httle,  shoving  about  the  bolts  of  linen  and  cloth, 
entangling  the  flax  carded  and  uncarded,  and  when 
she  finally  had  done  all  this  she  had  also  managed  to 
seriously  interfere  with  human  affairs  in  the  house, 
upsetting  them  as  much  as  she  dared. 


DIETEGEN  141 

Since  it  was  her  design  to  become,  after  all,  the 
forester's  wife,  so  as  to  acquire  a  more  dignified  and 
assured  position  in  life,  it  became  clear  to  her  that 
what  above  all  would  be  necessary  was  to  part  per- 
manently Kuengolt  and  Dietegen,  as  to  whose  in- 
clination for  each  other  she  had  soon  satisfied  herself. 
For  she  argued  quite  correctly  that  Dietegen,  once 
he  married  Kuengolt,  would  doubtless  become  the 
forester's  successor,  and  thus  not  only  remain  per- 
manently in  the  house,  but  that  in  that  case  the 
forester  himself,  in  view  of  his  strong  affection  for  the 
memory  of  his  departed  wife,  would  never  wed  again. 
But,  she  reasoned,  if  both  the  children  in  some  way 
could  be  made  to  shun  the  house,  it  would  be  much 
more  likely  that  the  forester  would  marry  again,  feel- 
ing lonesome  all  by  himself. 

And  as  now,  as  she  discovered,  Kuengolt  every  day 
grew  handsomer  and  more  womanly,  she  took  care  to 
make  the  girl  constantly  conscious  both  of  her  own 
beauty  and  of  the  gifts  of  her  mind,  as  well  as  to  further 
develop  in  her  an  inborn  leaning  towards  coquetry. 
To  do  the  latter  she  skillfully  manipulated  Kuengolt's 
natural  vanity,  insinuating  to  her  that  every  young 
man  with  whom  she  came  in  contact  was  smitten  with 
her  charms  and  a  ready  suitor  for  her  hand  and  love, 
and  this  with  such  success  that  Kuengolt  actually 
learned  to  look  upon  all  the  youths  of  her  acquaintance 
solely  from  the  point  of  view  whether  they  readily 
acknowledged  her  preeminence  in  beauty  and  intel- 


142  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

lectual  gifts  or  not,  while  by  her  shrewd  maneuvers 
Violande  on  the  other  hand  made  every  one  of  all 
these  young  men  think  that  the  girFs  affections  were 
centered  wholly  upon  himself. 

Another  trick  used  by  Violande  with  the  same  end 
in  view  was  to  cultivate  social  intercourse  with  a 
number  of  other  young  girls  of  marriageable  age, 
who  were  frequently  invited  to  the  house  for  parties 
to  which  young  men  were  encouraged  to  come,  and 
under  her  guidance  and  leadership  there  was  much 
courting  and  gallivanting  going  on  at  these  meetings. 
Thus  it  came  about  that  Kuengolt,  when  less  than 
sixteen,  had  already  assembled  around  her  a  circle 
of  unquiet  young  people,  each  more  or  less  an  expert 
in  playing  the  love  game  as  a  species  of  delightful 
sport. 

In  the  pursuance  of  her  one  aim  Violande,  too, 
arranged  all  sorts  of  festivities,  great  and  small,  at 
the  house,  and  there  was  mongering  in  scandal,  stories 
more  or  less  compromising  this  or  that  couple  or  in- 
dividual, many  quarrels  and  much  noise  and  singing 
and  music  or  dancing,  and  it  was  usually  the  most 
objectionable  of  the  customary  guests  on  these  occa- 
sions that  were  also  the  boldest  and  most  foolish,  and 
at  the  same  time  the  most  difficult  to  get  rid  of. 

All  these  things  were  not  to  Dietegen's  taste.  At 
first  he  was  a  mere  onlooker,  indifferent  and  still  in 
the  grasp  of  his  sincere  and  deep  mourning  for  the 
death  of  his  fostermother,  making  a  melancholy  face 


DIETEGEN  143 

which  to  a  growing  youth  is  not  the  most  becoming. 
But  when  all  these  pleasure-mad  young  people  were 
rather  amused  by  a  seriousness  which  seemed  un- 
suitable to  his  age,  and  as  Kuengolt  herself  took  the 
same  attitude  towards  him,  the  youth  tried  to  revenge 
himself  by  awkward  attempts  at  dignified  silence. 
But  these  tactics  were  even  less  successful,  and  ended 
one  day  with  Dietegen's  clearly  perceiving  that  he 
among  them  all  was  out  of  tune.  In  fact,  on  one 
occasion  he  observed  Kuengolt  seated  in  the  midst  of 
a  group  of  scornful  youths  all  of  whom  were  deriding 
him  and  she,  instead  of  disapproving,  evidently  siding 
with  them  against  him. 

When  Dietegen  had  experienced  this,  he  turned 
silently  away,  and  from  that  day  on  avoided  the  whole 
company.  Anyway,  he  had  now  attained  the  age 
when  vigorous  youths  begin  to  think  of  making  strong 
men  of  themselves.  Upon  the  holding  upon  which 
stood  the  forester's  house  there  was,  from  time  im- 
memorial laid  the  duty  of  maintaining  three  or  four 
fully  equipped  fighting  men,  and  this  obligation  the 
forester  himself  had  always  carried  out  most  scrupu- 
lously. With  great  pleasure  he  found  that  Dietegen, 
shot  up  straight  and  nimble,  would  soon  fill  the  same 
fine  armor  in  which  he  had  once  hoped  to  see  his  own 
son. 

Thus  Dietegen  with  other  young  gamekeepers  and 
helpers  on  lengthy  winter  evenings  went  to  fencing 
school,  where  he  learned  to  make  proper  use  of  the 


144  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

shorter  weapons,  according  to  the  methods  of  his 
home,  and  during  the  spring  and  summer  seasons  he 
spent  many  a  Sunday  or  holiday  upon  spacious  fields 
or  forest  clearings  where  the  youths  of  the  district 
learned  to  march  in  closed  formations  for  hours  at 
a  stretch,  and  to  attack,  leaping  broad  trenches  by 
the  aid  of  their  long  spears,  and  in  every  other  way 
to  render  their  bodies  supple,  active  and  strong,  or 
else,  perhaps,  to  practice  the  new  art  of  the  musketeer 
whose  weapon  is  loaded  with  powder  and  shot. 

Since  by  all  these  changes  mentioned  above  life  in 
the  forester's  house  altered  greatly,  and  since  particu- 
larly the  feminine  doings  there  disturbed  him  sadly, 
although  he  paid  scant  attention  to  the  latter,  it 
happened  that  he  little  by  little  acquired  the  habit 
of  frequenting  the  taverns  where  his  townsfellows  met 
much  of  tener  than  had  been  the  case  during  his  married 
life.  And  while  absenting  himself  from  the  childish 
folly  practiced  at  his  own  house,  he  succumbed  to  the 
maturer  folly  of  men,  and  it  would  happen  now  and 
then  that  he  would  carry  his  head  like  a  heavy  burden, 
but  always  upright,  to  his  forest  home  as  late  as  mid- 
night or  more. 

Things  went  on  in  this  way  until,  on  a  sunny  St. 
John's  Day,  a  network  of  events  began  to  close  in. 

The  forester  himself  went  to  town  to  the  head- 
quarters of  his  guild,  where  on  that  festive  day  all 
were  summoned  to  attend  the  settlement  of  important 
affairs  concerning  the  craft,  to  conclude  with  a  great 


DIETEGEN  145 

annual  feast,  and  he  intended  to  remain  and  join 
there  in  the  carousal  until  the  advance  of  night. 

Dietegen  on  his  part  went  to  the  sharpshooter's 
meeting  place,  intending  to  spend  the  whole  long 
midsummer's  day  in  perfecting  himself  as  a  marskman. 
The  other  assistants  of  the  forester  and  his  servants 
of  the  household  also  went  their  own  way,  the  one  to 
visit  his  relatives  some  distance  across  the  country, 
another  to  the  dance  with  his  sweetheart,  and  the 
third  to  the  holiday  fair  to  buy  himself  cloth  for  a  new 
coat  and  a  pair  of  shoes. 

So  the  women  were  sitting  all  by  themselves  in  the 
house,  not  at  all  delighted  with  the  rude  manner  in 
which  the  men  had  left  them  to  their  own  devices, 
but  yet  eyeing  every  passer-by  and  peering  out  at  the 
sunny  landscape  in  the  hope  that  some  guests  would 
show  up  and  with  their  help  a  festivity  of  their  own 
might  be  arranged. 

As  a  suitable  preparation  for  that  or  any  con- 
tingency they  began  to  bake  spice  cakes  and  prepare 
all  sorts  of  sweets>  and  they  brewed  a  huge  bowlful 
of  heady  May  wine  flavored  with  honey  and  herbs, 
so  as  to  be  ready  for  either  chance  comers  or  to  offer 
a  night  cup  to  the  men  returning  home.  Next  they 
decked  themselves  in  holiday  finery,  and  ornamented 
head  and  bosom  with  flowers,  while  other  young  maid- 
ens, bidden  to  join  them  in  a  feminine  festival  time, 
one  after  the  other  also  came  from  town,  and  even 
the  very  last  and  least  of  the  serving  maids  belonging 


146  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

to  the  household  was  freshly  attired  to  look  her  best. 

Under  broadspreading  linden  trees,  right  in  front 
of  the  house,  the  table  was  set  for  a  dainty  meal,  the 
westering  sun  sending  his  last  golden  rays  like  a  bene- 
diction abroad  over  town  and  valley. 

There  the  women  now  were  seated  about  the  table, 
relishing  all  the  good  things  prepared  for  them,  and 
soon  the  chorus  of  them  were  intoning  folk-songs 
with  melodious  voices,  songs  telling  in  many  stanzas 
of  the  delights  and  despair  of  love,  songs  like  that  of 
the  two  royal  children,  or  "There  dallied  a  knight  with 
his  maiden  dear,"  and  similar  ones.  All  the  tunes 
sounded  the  longing  of  love-lorn  hearts,  the  faith  kept 
or  broken,  the  eternal  drama  of  passion.  Far  out  into 
the  evening  the  sweet  voices  were  carrying,  alluring, 
inviting.  The  birds  nesting  up  in  the  dense  foHage 
of  the  linden  trees,  after  being  silenced  for  a  spell, 
now  joined  in,  rivaling  their  human  competitors, 
and  from  over  in  the  forest  other  feathered  songsters 
assisted.  But  suddenly  another  band  of  choristers 
could  be  heard  above  the  din.  That  new  volume  of 
sound  came  floating  down  the  mountain  side,  a  min- 
gling of  male  voices  with  the  more  strident  notes  of 
fiddle  and  tabor  pipes.  A  troop  of  youths  had  come 
from  Ruechenstein,  and  this  instant  issued  from  the 
edge  of  the  woods.  Thus  they  came,  striding  along 
the  path  that  led  past  the  forester's  home  down  to  the 
valley,  a  number  of  musicians  at  their  head.  There 
was   the   son   of    the   burgomaster   of   Ruechenstein, 


DIETEGEN  147 

rather  a  madcap  and  therefore  a  great  exception  to  the 
overwhehning  majority  of  his  townsfolk,  who  clearly- 
dominated  the  noisy  throng.  Having  left  the  uni- 
versity abroad,  he  had  brought  with  him  a  few  fellow- 
students  after  his  own  heart,  among  them  being  a 
couple  of  divinity  students  and  a  young  and  jolly 
monk,  as  well  as  Hans  Schafuerli,  the  council  scribe, 
or  secretary,  of  Ruechenstein,  who  was  a  scrawny, 
bent  figure  of  a  man,  with  a  mighty  hunchback  and 
a  long  rapier.  He  was  the  last  of  the  train,  all  walking 
singly  because  of  the  narrow  path. 

But  when  they  set  eyes  on  the  row  of  singing  ladies, 
their  own  music  ceased,  and  they  stood  all  there, 
listening  attentively  to  the  charming  tune.  However, 
the  ladies  likewise  became  mute,  being  surprised  and 
wishful  to  see  what  now  was  going  to  happen.  Vio- 
lande  alone  retained  her  presence  of  mind,  and  stepped 
to  the  burgomaster's  son,  who  in  turn  saluted  her  with 
elaborate  courtesy,  and  telling  her  that  he  with  his 
friends  purposed  to  pay  a  flying  and  amusing  visit 
to  the  merry  neigjiboring  town,  in  order  to  spend 
St.  John's  Day  in  a  manner  agreeable  to  them  all. 
But,  he  continued,  having  had  the  good  fortune  to 
meet  with  these  ladies  in  this  unhoped-for  way,  they 
counted  on  the  pleasure  of  a  dance  with  them,  if  they 
might  make  so  bold  as  to  offer  themselves  as  partners, 
in  all  honor  and  decency.. 

Within  the  space  of  a  few  minutes  these  formalities 
had  been  complied  with,  and  the  dance  was  in  full 


148  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

swing  on  the  floor  of  the  big  banqueting  hall  of  the 
forester's  house.  Kuengolt  led  with  the  burgomaster's 
son,  Violande  with  the  jolly  monk,  and  the  other 
ladies  with  the  young  scholars.  But  the  most  expert 
and  ardent  dancer  proved  to  be  the  hunchback  scribe. 
And  despite  his  crooked  back  this  valiant  devotee 
of  the  terpsichorean  art  understood  marvelously  well 
how  to  advance  and  retreat  with  his  long  shanks  in 
the  maze,  these  legs  of  his  seeming  to  begin  right 
below  his  chin. 

But  Kuengolt's  humor  was  no  joyous  one,  and  when 
Violande  whispered  to  her  to  aim  at  the  conquest  of 
the  burgomaster's  son,  in  order  to  become  herself 
one  day  the  mistress  of  Ruechenstein,  she  remained 
frigid  and  indifferent.  But  suddenly  she  perceived 
the  herculean  efforts  of  the  artful  hunchback,  and  this 
extraordinary  sight  restored  her  spirits,  so  that  she 
laughed  with  all  her  heart.  And  she  instantly  de- 
manded to  dance  with  the  crooked  monster.  Indeed 
it  looked  like  a  scene  in  a  curious  fairy  tale,  to  see 
her  graceful  figure,  clad  in  green  and  the  head  set  off 
by  a  wreath  of  ruby  roses,  flitting  to  and  fro  in  the 
arms  of  the  ghastly  scribe,  his  hump  covered  with 
vivid  scarlet. 

But  swiftly  her  mind  altered.  From  the  scribe  she 
flew  into  the  arms  of  the  monk,  and  from  those  into 
the  keeping  of  the  young  students,  so  that  within 
less  than  half  an  hour  she  had  taken  a  turn  or  two 
with  each  one  of  the  young  strangers.     All  of  these 


DIETEGEN  149 

now  centered  their  gaze  upon  the  beautiful  damsel, 
while  the  other  young  women  present  attempted  in 
vain  to  recapture  their  partners. 

Violande  seeing  the  state  of  the  case,  quickly  sum- 
moned all  the  couples  to  the  table  beneath  the  lindens, 
to  rest  there  for  a  while  and  to  be  hospitably  enter- 
tained. She  placed  the  whole  company  most  judi- 
ciously, each  young  man  next  a  damsel,  and  Kuengolt 
beside  the  burgomaster's  son. 

But  Kuengolt  was  tormented  by  a  craving  to  see 
all  these  young  men  subject  to  her  will  and  under  the 
complete  influence  of  her  charms.  She  exclaimed  that 
she  herself  wished  to  wait  upon  her  guests,  and  has- 
tened into  the  house  to  get  more  wine.  There  she 
quickly  and  surreptitiously  found  her  way  into  Vio- 
lande's  chamber,  where  she  rummaged  in  her  clothes 
press.  In  an  hour  of  mutual  confidences  Violande 
had  shown  her  a  small  phial  and  told  her  that  this 
contained  a  philtre,  or  love  potion,  called  "Follow 
Me."  Whoever  should  drink  its  contents  when  served 
by  the  hand  of  a  wdman,  would  inevitably  become  her 
slave  and  victim,  being  bound  to  follow  her  even  to 
death's  door.  True,  Violande  had  added,  there  was 
not  contained  in  that  potion  any  of  the  strong  and 
dangerous  poison  denominated  Hippomanes,  brewed 
from  the  liquor  obtained  from  the  frontal  excrescence 
of  a  first-born  foal,  but  rather  it  came  from  the  small 
bones  of  a  green  frog  that  had  been  placed  upon  an 
ants'   nest  and  cleanly  scraped  and  gnawed  off  by 


I50  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

these  insects,  until  ready  for  occult  use.  But  all  the 
same,  Violande  had  stated,  this  preparation  was  potent 
enough  to  turn  the  heads  of  a  half  dozen  of  obstreper- 
ous men.  She  herself,  Violande  said,  had  obtained  the 
philtre  from  a  nun  whose  whilom  lover  had  succumbed 
to  the  pest  before  the  philtre  had  had  time  to  work, 
so  that  she,  the  nun,  had  resigned  herself  to  a  convent 
life,  and  now  Violande  had  possession  of  this  sovereign 
remedy  without  knowing  exactly  what  to  do  with  it. 
For  she  did  not  dare  to  throw  it  away  for  fear  of  the 
unknown  consequences. 

This  phial  Kuengolt  now  found  after  some  search, 
and  poured  its  contents  into  the  jug  of  wine  she  car- 
ried, and  with  a  beating  heart  she  hastened  outside 
to  her  guests.  She  bade  the  youths  all  quaff  their 
drink  inasmuch  as  she  would  offer  to  them  a  new  and 
sweet  spice  wine,  and  when  serving  out  the  contents 
of  the  jug  she  knew  how  to  contrive  matters  in  such 
wise  that  not  a  drop  of  the  fluid  remained.  To  accom- 
plish this  she  had  first  evenly  distributed  wine  into  all 
the  goblets,  and  afterwards  poured  something  more 
into  each  man's,  in  every  instance  sending  an  alluring 
glance  into  the  soul  of  every  swain,  so  that  the  sorcery 
should  have  its  full  effect,  as  she  thought. 

But  indeed  the  magical  workings  of  the  philtre  really 
consisted  in  these  impartially  and  enticingly  subdivided 
glances  of  her  roguish  eye,  so  that  the  youths  all 
vied,  blind  and  selfish  with  passion,  to  gain  her  sole 
favor,  as  will  always  happen  when  a  goal  striven  for 


DIETEGEN  151 

by  all  in  common  lies  temptingly  there  for  the  boldest 
and  luckiest  to  achieve. 

All  the  young  men  without  exception  participated 
in  this  love  game,  leaving  their  partners  rudely  to 
themselves,  and  the  latter,  feeling  deeply  the  disgrace 
and  humiliation  of  being  outstripped  by  Kuengolt, 
paled  with  anger  and  disappointment,  casting  their 
eyes  down  and  vainly  trying  to  cover  their  defeat  by  a 
whispered  conversation  amongst  themselves.  Even 
the  monk  suddenly  abandoned  a  dusky  serving  maid 
whom  but  a  moment  before  he  had  embraced  tenderly, 
while  the  haughty  scribe,  the  hunchback,  with  ener- 
getic steps  crowded  out  the  burgomaster's  son  who  at 
that  instant  held  Kuengolt's  lovely  hand  in  his  own, 
caressing  it  subtly. 

But  Kuengolt  showed  no  favors  to  any  one  in  particu- 
lar. Cold  as  an  icicle  she  remained  towards  each  and 
every  one  of  her  young  guests,  and  like  a  smooth  snake 
she  glided  about  among  them,  with  head  and.  senses 
cool.  And  when  she  saw  that  thus  she  held  them 
all  in  the  hollow  of  her  hand,  she  even  attempted  to 
reconcile  anew  the  other  women,  speaking  pleasantly 
to  them  and  urging  them  to  return  to  the  table. 

Darkness  had  fallen.  The  stars  glinted  high  in 
the  heavens,  and  the  sickle  of  the  new  moon  stood 
above  the  forest,  but  this  gentle  light  now  was  wiped 
out  by  the  gleaming  and  wavering  flames  of  a  huge 
St.  John's  bonfire  that  had  been  lighted  up  on  the 
summit  of  a  lone  hill  by  the  peasant  population, 
visible  from  afar. 


152  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

"Let  us  all  go  and  look  at  this  bonfire,"  cried  Kuen- 
golt.  "The  way  to  it  is  short  and  pleasant  through 
the  woods!  But  we  must  have  it  done  as  beseems 
us  all  —  the  women  and  girls  first,  and  the  young 
men  in  the  rear." 

And  so  it  was  done.  Pitch  torches  lighted  up  the 
path  for  them,  and  song  cheered  the  company. 

Violande  alone  had  remained  behind  as  custodian 
of  the  house,  but  more  especially  to  await  the  coming 
of  the  chief  forester.  For  she,  too,  meant  to  make 
her  catch  that  day.  And  she  had  not  long  to  wait. 
He  came  in  the  roused  mood  of  a  toper,  and  with  his 
senses  only  partly  under  control.  When  he  saw  the 
tables  under  the  lindens  before  the  house,  he  sat 
down  and  called  for  a  sleeping  draught  at  Violande's 
hands. 

Without  loss  of  time  she  went  to  do  his  bidding. 
But  she  also  first  disappeared  into  her  own  room  to 
get  the  small  vial  containing  the  love  potion  which  she 
meant  to  serve  the  man  who  had  scorned  her  so  far. 
However,  her  hasty  search  for  it  was  fruitless.  Neither 
did  she  discover  it  in  Kuengolt's  chamber,  whither 
instant  suspicion  had  driven  her.  For  the  truth 
was  that  that  serving  maid  who  had  been  carelessly 
pushed  aside  by  the  monk  when  Kuengolt  had 
triumphed  over  her  rivals,  had  picked  it  up  on  the 
stairs  where  it  had  been  cast  by  the  haughty  girl. 

But  Violande  lost  no  time  in  searching  further. 
Instead  she  made  his  cup  all  the  stronger  and  sweeter, 


DIETEGEN  153 

and  then  she  bent  over  the  man  of  her  choice  while 
he  slowly  and  rapturously  emptied  the  tankard. 
Violande  was  dressed  for  the  occasion.  She  wore  over 
her  skirt  a  tunic  of  pale  gold,  the  edges  and  seams 
picked  out  in  red,  and  allowing  her  delicate  white 
skin  to  peep  forth  here  and  there.  Her  bosom  heaved 
stormily  and  she  showed  a  tenderly  caressing  humor. 
Thus  she  leaned  on  the  table  in  close  proximity  to  him. 

"Ah  indeed,  cousin,"  said  the  forester,  when  acci- 
dentally he  cast  a  glance  in  her  direction,  "how  hand- 
some you  look  to-night." 

At  these  words  she  smiled  happily  and  looked  full 
at  him  with  eyes  that  spoke  eloquently,  saying:  "Do 
you  indeed  like  my  looks?  Well,  it  has  taken  you 
a  long  time  to  find  that  out.  If  you  only  knew  for 
how  many  years,  in  fact,  ever  since  I  was  a  child, 
I  have  cherished  you  in  my  heart." 

That  had  a  greater  effect  on  the  good  man  than  any 
love  potion  made  of  frog^s  bones,  and  he  seemed  to  see 
before  his  eyes  dim  recollections.  Of  a  pretty  girl 
child  he  dreamed,  and  now  he  saw  her  before  him 
at  his  side,  a  matured  beauty  in  the  full  development 
of  her  womanly  charms,  and  it  was  as  if  she  had  come 
to  him  from  a  far  distance,  bringing  to  him  unsolicited 
the  splendid  gift  of  her  fine  person.  His  generous 
heart  became  entangled  with  his  excited  senses,  and 
reshaped  and  formulated  all  sorts  of  enticing  images. 
Through  his  hazy  brain  ir  its  vinous  exaltation  there 
floated  a  Violande  who  suddenly  had  been  metamor- 


154  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

phosed  into  a  winsome  being  that,  after  aH  manner  of 
sufferings,  had  been  offered  to  his  arms  as  something 
that  to  embrace  and  call  his  would  not  only  make 
herself  happy  but  would  Hkewise  entrust  to  his  care 
a  chaste  and  loving  woman  that  would  render  himself 
happy  once  more.  The  memory  of  his  dead  wife 
paled  for  the  nonce  before  this  glittering  picture. 

He  seized  her  hand,  fondled  her  cheeks,  and  said: 
"We  are  not  yet  old,  dear  Cousin  Violande!  Will 
you  become  my  wife?" 

And  since  she  left  her  hand  in  his  grasp,  and  bent 
nearer  to  him,  this  time,  seeing  at  last  the  realization 
of  her  ambition,  actually  glowing  with  her  new-found 
bliss,  he  loosened  the  bridal  ring  of  his  wife  from  the 
handle  of  his  dagger  where  since  her  death  he  had 
worn  it,  and  placed  the  trinket  on  Violande's  finger. 
She  thereupon  pressed  her  own  face  against  the  leonine 
and  ruddy  countenance  of  her  middle-aged  lover, 
and  the  two  embraced  tenderly  and  kissed  under  the 
whispering  linden  trees  which  were  stirred  by  the 
night  breeze.  The  shrewd  man,  ordinarily  of  such 
sound  judgment,  thought  he  had  discovered  the 
sovereign  blessing  of  life  itself. 

At  this  moment  .Dietegen  returned  home,  bearing 
his  weapons  in  his  hand.  Since  he  went  towards  the 
house  across  the  greensward,  the  fond  couple  did  not 
hear  his  approach,  and  he  saw  with  confusion  and 
amazement  the  whole  scene.  Shamed  and  reddening, 
he  retired  as  quietly  as  he  could,  so  that  they  did 


DIETEGEN  155 

not  notice  him,  and  he  went  around  the  whole  house, 
in  order  to  make  his  entrance  by  the  back  door.  But 
while  still  on  his  way  he  heard  suddenly  loud  calling 
and  noise  as  though  someone  were  in  peril  and  hot 
dispute.  Without  a  moment's  hesitation  Dietegen 
hurried  off  in  the  direction  of  the  hubbub.  And  soon 
he  found  the  same  company  that  had  ere  now  left  the 
house  in  the  happiest  humor  in  a  terrible  uproar. 

It  seemed  that  the  young  men,  half-crazed  by  the 
strong  wine  and  by  jealousy  of  each  other,  on  their 
way  back  from  the  St.  John's  bonfire,  being  now 
mingled  with  the  young  women,  had  begun  to  quarrel 
among  themselves.  From  words  they  had  come  to 
daggers  drawn,  and  more  than  one  was  bleeding 
from  serious  wounds.  But  just  the  very  moment 
of  his  arrival  he  had  seen  the  Ruechenstein  scribe 
furiously  attacking  the  burgomaster's  son,  and  run- 
ning him  through  with  his  long  rapier.  The  victim, 
also  with  sword  in  hand,  lay  prone  on  the  grass  and 
was  just  giving  up  the  ghost.  The  others,  unaware 
of  this,  had  seized  each  other  by  the  throats,  and  the 
women  were  shrieking  and  calling  loudly  for  help. 
Only  Kuengolt  stood  there  pale  as  death  but  watching 
the  horrible  scene  with  open  mouth. 

"Kuengolt,  what  is  up  here?"  asked  Dietegen, 
when  he  had  made  her  out.  She  shuddered  at  his 
address,  but  looked  as  though  relieved.  However, 
he  now  vigorously  began  to  interfere,  and  by  dint  of 
rough  handling  of  some  of  the  worst  fire-eaters  he  soon 


156  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

succeeded  in  separating  the  struggling  and  cursing 
mass.  Then  he  pointed  to  the  dead  youth  on  the 
ground,  and  that  sobered  them  even  more  quickly 
than  his  remonstrances.  Then  they  all  stared  like 
mutes  upon  the  dead  man  and  upon  the  grim  hunch-^ 
back,  who  seemed  to  have  lost  his  wits  completely. 

In  the  meanwhile  some  peasants  from  the  neighbor- 
hood as  well  as  the  homecoming  gamekeepers  from  the 
forestry  had  appeared  on  the  scene,  and  these  bound 
securely  the  raging  Schafuerli,  the  murderous  scribe, 
and  arrested  the  remainder  of  the  Ruechensteiners. 

And  that  was  a  bad  morning  that  now  followed. 
The  forester  was  engaged  to  the  wicked  Violande, 
and  his  head  buzzed  unmercifully.  One  dead  Rue- 
chensteiner  lay  in  the  house,  and  the  rest  of  them  were 
kept  in  the  dungeon.  Before  the  noon  hour  had  tolled 
a  delegation  from  Ruechenstein,  with  the  burgomaster 
himself,  the  father  of  the  slain,  at  its  head,  had  arrived 
in  order  to  inquire  carefully  into  the  whole  matter  and 
to  demand  strict  justice  and  punishment  of  the  guilty. 

But  already  the  imprisoned  secretary  of  the  Rue- 
chenstein council,  the  grim  Schafuerli,  knowing  that 
his  neck  was  in  peril,  had  made  a  deposition  in  his 
tower  in  which  he  charged  responsibility  for  the  whole 
bad  business  upon  the  women  of  Seldwyla  whom  they 
had  met  on  the  previous  day,  and  more  especially 
upon  Kuengolt,  whom  he  accused  of  sorcery  and  black 
art. 


DIETEGEN  157 

That  maid  servant  who  had  become  disgruntled 
for  a  cause  mentioned  before  had  passed  on  the  empty 
vial  that  had  contained  Violande's  philtre,  to  the 
monk,  and  the  latter  had  hastened  to  put  it  into  the 
hands  of  the  scribe,  who  now  used  it  as  a  powerful 
weapon. 

To  the  grave  dismay  of  the  Seldwylians  the  whole 
matter  in  the  course  of  that  first  day  even  turned 
against  the  forester's  daughter  and  against  his  house- 
hold. Everybody  in  those  days,  and  not  alone  in 
Seldwyla,  firmly  believed  in  sorcery  and  love  potions, 
and  the  members  of  the  Ruechenstein  delegation 
behaved  so  menacingly  and  hinted  at  such  terrible 
reprisals  that  the  popularity  and  the  respect  in  which 
the  forester  was  held  could  not  prevent  the  imprison- 
ment of  Kuengolt,  especially  as  he  was  still  severely 
suffering  from  his  excesses  of  the  previous  day, 
and  felt  like  one  paralyzed. 

She  instantly  made  a  full  confession,  being  more 
dead  than  alive  from  terror,  and  Schafuerli  and  his 
boon  companions  were  liberated.  And  then  the 
Ruechensteiners  made  the  formal  demand  to  have  the 
girl  delivered  up  to  them  for  adequate  atonement, 
since  she  had  injured  a  number  of  their  townsfolk 
and  caused  the  death  of  one  of  them.  This,  however, 
was  not  conceded  to  them,  and  then  the  Ruechen- 
steiners departed  in  an  angry  mood,  threatening  dire 
reprisals.  The  body  of  the  burgomaster's  son  they 
took  along.     But  when  later  on  they  heard  that  the 


158  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

Seldwyla  authorities  had  sentenced  the  girl  but  to 
a  twelvemonth's  mild  incarceration,  the  ancient  en- 
mity which  had  slept  for  a  number  of  years  now  re- 
awakened, and  it  became  a  perilous  adventure  for 
any  Seldwylian  to  be  caught  on  Ruechenstein  soil. 

Now  the  town  of  Seldwyla  counted  as  a  fit  penalty 
for  misdeeds  which  according  to  their  notions  were 
reckoned  among  the  lighter  ones  and  which  conse- 
quently required  no  severe  treatment,  not  imprison- 
ment proper  but  rather  the  awarding  of  the  culprits 
to  persons  that  became  responsible  for  their  further 
conduct.  In  the  custody  of  such  persons  the  culprits 
remained  during  the  length  of  the  sentence,  and  these 
custodians  were  held  to  employ  them  suitably  and  to 
feed  and  shelter  them  adequately.  This  mode  of 
punishment  was  used  most  often  with  women  or  youth- 
ful persons.  Thus,  then,  Kuengolt,  too,  was  taken 
to  one  of  the  chambers  of  the  town  hall,  and  there 
she  was  to  be  auctioned  off,  at  least  her  services  and 
keep.  And  before  that  ceremony  she  had  to  submit 
to  being  publicly  exhibited  there. 

The  forester,  whose  sunny  humor  had  altogether 
disappeared  with  these  trials,  said  sighing  to  Dietegen 
that  it  was  a  hard  thing  for  him  to  go  to  the  town  hall 
and  watch  there  in  behalf  of  his  daughter,  but  some- 
body surely  must  be  there  of  her  family  during  these 
bitter  hours. 

Then  Dietegen  said:  "I  will  go  in  your  stead; 
that  is,  if  I  am  good  enough  for  it  in  your  opinion." 


DIETEGEN  159 

His  patron  shook  hands  with  him.  "Yes,  do  it!" 
he  said,  "and  I  will  thank  you  for  it/' 

So  Dietegen  went  where  some  of  the  councilmen 
were  seated  and  a  few  persons  willing  to  take  charge 
of  the  prisoner.  He  had  girded  his  sword  around 
his  loins,  and  had  a  manly  and  rugged  air  about  him. 

And  when  Kuengolt  was  led  inside,  white  as  chalk 
and  deeply  chagrined,  and  was  to  stand  in  front  of 
the  table,  he  swiftly  pulled  up  a  chair  and  made  her 
sit  down  in  it,  he  placing  himself  behind  and  putting 
his  hand  on  the  back  of  it.  She  had  looked  up  at  him 
surprised,  and  now  sent  him  a  glance  fraught  with 
a  painful  smile.  But  he  apparently  paid  no  heed 
looking  straight  on  over  her  head,  severe  of  mien. 

The  first  who  made  a  bid  for  her  custody  was  the 
town  piper,  a  drunkard,  who  had  been  sent  by  his 
poor  wife  in  order  to  help  increase  their  receipts  a  bit. 
This,  she  calculated,  was  all  the  more  to  be  expected 
because  Kuengolt  would  probably  receive  from  her 
home  all  sorts  of  good  things  to  eat,  and  these, 
she  considered,  they  would  secure  wholly  or  in  part. 

"Do  you  want  to  go  to  the  town  piper's  house?" 
Dietegen  curtly  asked  the  girl.  After  attentively 
regarding  the  red-nosed  and  half-drunken  fellow,  she 
said:  "No."  And  the  piper,  with  a  bhssful  smile, 
remarked  laughing:  "Good,  that  suits  me  too,"  and 
toddled  off  on  shaking  legs. 

Next  an  old  furrier  and  capmaker  made  a  bid, 
since  he  thought  he  could  utilize  Kuengolt  very  handily 


i6o  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

in  sewing  and  making  a  goodly  profit  out  of  her  serv- 
ices. But  this  man  had  a  large  sore  on  his  thigh, 
and  this  he  was  greasing  and  plastering  with  salve 
all  day  long,  and  also  a  growth  the  size  of  a  chicken's 
egg  on  the  top  of  his  pate,  so  that  Kuengolt  had  already 
been  afraid  of  him  when  she  passed  his  shop  as  a  child 
going  to  school.  When,  therefore,  Dietegen  put  the 
query  to  her  whether  she  was  willing  to  go  to  his 
house,  and  the  girl  decidedly  negatived  that,  the  man 
went  off  loudly  venting  his  spleen.  He  grumbled  and 
growled  like  a  bear  whose  honeycomb  has  been  snatched 
away. 

Now  a  money  changer  stepped  up,  one  who  was 
notorious  both  for  his  greed  and  usurious  avarice  and 
for  his  lewdness.  But  scarcely  had  that  one  leveled 
his  red  eyes  upon  her,  and  opened  his  wry  mouth 
for  a  bid,  when  Dietegen  motioned  him  off  with  a 
threatening  gesture,  even  without  asking  the  terrified 
girl  herself. 

And  now  there  were  left  but  a  few  more,  decent 
and  respectable  citizens,  people  against  whom  nothing 
could  be  urged  reasonably,  and  it  was  these  between 
whom  the  final  choice  and  decision  lay.  The  smallest 
bid  was  made  by  the  gravedigger  of  the  cemetery  next 
the  town  cathedral,  a  quiet  and  good  man,  who  also 
possessed  an  excellent  wife  and,  so  he  thought,  a 
suitable  place  where  to  keep  such  a  prisoner  in  safe 
custody,  and  who  certainly  had  already  had  charge 
of  several  other  prisoners  before. 


DIETEGEN  i6i 

To  this  man,  then,  Kuengolt  was  given  in  charge, 
and  was  taken  at  once  to  his  house  which  was  situated 
between  the  cemetery  and  a  side  street.  Dietegen 
went  along  in  order  to  sefe  how  she  would  be  housed. 
It  turned  out  that  her  quarters  would  be  an  open, 
small  antechamber  of  the  house  itself,  immediately 
adjoining  the  graveyard  ^x^  only  separated  from 
it  by  an  iron  fence.  There,  as  it  seemed,  the  sexton 
was  in  the  habit  of  keeping  his  prisoners  during  the 
warm  season  of  the  year,  while  for  the  winter  he  simply 
admitted  them  into  his  own  dwelling  room,  a  slender 
chain  fastening  them  to  the  tile  stove. 

But  when  Kuengolt  found  herself  in  her  prison  and 
was  separated  merely  by  a  fence  from  the  graves  of  the 
dead,  moreover  saw  near  by  the  old  deadhouse  filled 
with  skulls  and  bones,  she  began  to  tremble  and 
begged  they  would  not  leave  her  there  all  through 
the  night.  But  the  sexton's  wife  who  was  just  drag- 
ging in  a  straw  mattress  and  a  blanket,  and  also  hid 
the  sight  of  the  graves  by  suspending  a  curtain, 
answered  that  this  request  could  not  be  listened  to, 
and  that  her  new  abode  would  be  wholesome  for  her 
moral  welfare  and  as  a  means  of  repenting  her  sins. 
And  she  could  not  be  shaken  in  this  resolve. 

But  Dietegen  replied:  "Be  quiet,  Kuengolt,  for 
I  am  not  afraid  of  the  dead  or  of  any  spook,  and  I 
will  come  here  every  night  and  keep  watch  in  front  of 
the  iron  fence  until  you,  too,  will  no  longer  fear." 

He  said  this,  however,  in  an  aside  to  her,  so  that 


i62  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

the  woman  could  not  overhear  it,  and  then  he  left 
for  home.  There  he  found  the  saddened  forester 
who  had  just  reached  an  understanding  with  Violande 
that  they  would  not  celebrate  their  wedding  until 
after  Kuengolt's  release  from  prison  and  after  the 
scandal  created  by  the  occurrence  should  have  had 
time  to  blow  over.  During  all  their  discussion  of  the 
matter  Violande  kept  still  as  a  mouse,  glad  that  she 
as  the  prime  author  of  the  whole  mischief  should  have 
escaped  all  the  consequences,  for  the  magical  philtre 
had  been  hers,  as  we  know. 

When  the  early  hours  of  evening  were  over  and 
midnight  approaching,  Dietegen  began  to  make  good 
his  promise.  He  started  unobserved,  took  his  sword 
and  a  flask  of  choice  wine  along,  and  climbed  from  the 
high  slope  down  into  the  valley  and  so  to  town,  and 
there  he  swung  himself  fearlessly  over  the  graveyard 
wall,  strode  across  the  graves  themselves,  and  at  last 
stood  in  front  of  Kuengolt's  new  abode.  She  sat 
breathlessly  and  shaking  with  fright  upon  her  straw 
mattress,  behind  the  curtain,  and  listened  with  freez- 
ing blood  to  every  noise,  even  the  slightest,  that  struck 
her  ear.  For  even  before  this  ghostly  hour  of  twelve 
she  had  undergone  several  convulsions  of  dread  and 
unreasoning  fear.  In  the  deadhouse,  for  instance, 
a  cat  had  slyly  climbed  over  the  bones,  and  these  had 
clattered  somewhat.  Then  also  the  night  wind  had 
moved  the  bushes  growing  over  the  tombs,  so  that  they 
made  a  weird  noise,  and  the  iron  rooster  that  served 


DIETEGEN  163 

as  a  weather  vane  on  top  of  the  church  roof  had  creaked 
mysteriously,  making  an  awful  sound  never  heard  in 
daytime.     So  that  the  girl  was  in  a  frenzy  of  terror. 

When  she  therefore  heard  the  steps  nearing  more 
and  more,  Kuengolt  had  a  new  fit  of  fright,  and  shook 
like  a  leaf.  But  when  he  stretched  his  hands  through 
the  iron  bars  of  the  fence  and  pushed  back  the  curtain, 
so  that  the  full  moon  lit  up  the  whole  dark  space 
around  her,  and  in  a  low  voice  called  her  name,  she 
rose  quickly,  ran  in  his  direction  and  stretched  out 
both  hands  to  him. 

^'Dietegen!"  she  exclaimed,  and  burst  into  tears, 
the  first  she  had  been  able  to  shed  since  that  ominous 
day;  for  until  that  hour  she  had  lived  as  though 
smitten  with  paralysis,  dazed  and  benumbed. 

Dietegen,  however,  did  not  take  her  hand,  but 
instead  handed  her  the  flask  of  wine,  saying:  "Here, 
take  a  mouthful!    It  will  do  you  good." 

So  she  drank,  and  also  ate  of  the  dainty  wheaten 
bread  of  her  father's  house  that  he  had  brought  along. 
And  by  and  by  her  courage  was  restored,  and  when 
she  clearly  perceived  that  he  had  no  mind  to  con- 
verse any  more  with  her,  she  retired  silently  to  her 
couch  and  cried  without  a  stop,  till  at  last  she  sank 
into  a  quiet  sleep. 

But  he,  the  young  man,  in  his  narrow  youthful 
ideas  and  in  his  inexperience  of  real  life  had  made  up 
his  mind  that  she  was  a  being  turned  completely 
to  wickedness  and  evil,  and  one  that  was  unable  to  do 


1 64  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

right.  And  he  served  as  her  sentinel  during  this  and 
other  nights,  seating  himself  upon  an  ancient  grave- 
stone leaning  against  the  wall  solely  out  of  regard 
for  her  departed  mother  and  because  she  had  saved 
his  own  life. 

Kuengolt  slept  until  sunrise,  and  when  she  awoke 
and  looked  about  she  observed  that  Dietegen  had 
softly  stolen  away. 

Thus  one  night  after  another  passed,  and  he  faith- 
fully watched  and  guarded  her,  for  he  indeed  held  the 
belief  that  the  place  was  not  without  danger  for  any- 
one without  a  good  conscience  and  shaken  with  fear. 
But  each  time  he  brought  her  something  of  a  relish 
along,  and  often  he  would  ask  her  what  she  desired 
for  herself,  and  he  would  carry  out  her  wishes  if  at 
all  justifiable. 

He  also  came  when  it  rained  or  stormed,  missing 
not  a  single  night,  and  on  those  nights  when,  according 
to  the  popular  superstitions  then  universally  held, 
the  dead  walked  and  which  were  considered  particu- 
larly perilous  to  the  living,  he  came  all  the  more 
promptly. 

Kuengolt  on  her  part  by  and  by  managed  to  arrange 
things  so  that  during  the  daytime  she  had  her  curtain 
drawn,  in  order,  as  she  said,  to  conceal  herself  from 
the  curious  who  went  to  the  cemetery  to  spy  on  her, 
but  in  reality  to  sleep,  for  she  preferred  to  remain 
awake  at  night,  to  keep  her  faithful  sentinel  in  view 
all  the  time,  and  to  ponder  the  things  that  had  brought 


DIETEGEN  165 

her  there,  and  how  he  had  conducted  himself  towards 
her  these  last  few  years.  But  Dietegen  knew  nothing 
of  all  this,  believing  her  to  be  sound  asleep. 

She  felt  herself  engrossed  with  a  new  and  unexpected 
happiness,  and  while  he  diligently  kept  watch  over 
her  during  the  hours  of  darkness,  she  enjoyed  his  mere 
presence,  and  all  her  thinking  was  of  him.  She  had 
no  slightest  suspicion  that  he  judged  her  so  harshly, 
and  was  living  in  hopes  that  she  could  reestablish 
her  claim  on  him,  seeing  that  he  proved  so  faithful 
to  her.  Her  father,  however,  did  not  share  her  dreams. 
He  visited  her  at  least  once  every  week,  and  when  she 
on  these  occasions  nearly  always  shyly  mentioned 
Dietegen's  name,  and  he  marked  that  she  indeed  had 
again  turned  to  him  in  her  thoughts,  he  would  sigh 
and  groan  in  spirit,  because  while  also  wishing  for  a 
union  of  those  two,  and  feeling  convinced  that  his 
fine  foster  son  alone  was  able  to  again  rehabilitate 
his  daughter,  it  appeared  highly  improbable  to  him 
that  Dietegen  would  wish  to  woo  a  witch  that  had  been 
punished  for  her  uncanny  doings  by  his  fellow  citi- 
zens, and  as  it  seemed  to  him,  justly. 

In  the  meantime  another  caller  had  put  in  an  ap- 
pearance with  Kuengolt,  no  less  a  person  than  the 
secretary    of    the    council    of    Ruechenstein    himself. 

This  highly  enterprising  and  venturesome  hunch- 
back was  unable  to  forget  the  beautiful  being  on  whose 
account  he  had  committed  murder.  The  blood  coursed 
through  his  veins  more  rapidly  than  in  those  of  a 


i66  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

normally  shaped  fellow,  and  waking  or  sleeping  her 
image  did  not  lose  its  hold  on  him.  His  belief  was  that 
the  image  of  this  witch  dwelt  in  his  heart  by  virtue 
of  her  black  art,  and  that  it  was  shooting  along  within 
his  blood  vessels  as  does  a  frail  boat  in  a  powerful 
storm,  all  in  a  magical  way. 

The  more  he  reflected  the  more  convinced  he  be- 
came of  this,  and  since  he  had  daring  enough  and  to 
spare,  he  finally  made  up  his  mind  to  seek  alleviation 
of  his  tortures  from  the  primal  source,  the  witch 
herself.  At  the  Capuchin  monastery,  where  he  had 
first  gone  for  a  ghostly  cure,  he  had  failed,  and  thus 
one  moonless,  dark  night  he  started  out,  across  the 
mountain  and  as  far  as  the  cemetery  where  he  knew 
her  to  be  kept  a  captive. 

Kuengolt  heard  his  approaching  steps.  Since  it 
was  not  yet  the  hour  when  Dietegen  used  to  come, 
and  also  because  these  steps  did  not  seem  to  be  his, 
she  took  fright  and  hid  behind  the  curtain.  But 
Schafuerli  now  lighted  a  candle  he  had  brought  along, 
and  thrust  his  hand  with  it  through  the  aperture, 
searching  the  dark  space  with  his  eager  eyes  until 
he  had  finally  discovered  her  crouched  in  a  corner. 

"Come  here,  witch  maid,"  he  muttered  excitedly, 
"and  give  me  both  thine  hands  and  that  scarlet  mouth 
of  thine.  For  thou  must  quench  the  fire  thou  hast 
caused." 

The  girl  was  frightened  beyond  words.  By  his 
crooked  shape  she  had  recogni^jed  him  in  the  dusky 


DIETEGEN  167 

half-light,  and  the  recollection  of  the  sufferings  this 
misshapen  recreant  had  occasioned  her,  together 
with  the  repugnant  presence  of  the  man  himself, 
drove  her  almost  to  madness.  Powerless  to  utter 
a  sound,  she  sank  down  trembling  in  every  limb. 

Seeing  this,  the  bold  knave  began  to  shake  the 
iron  bars  of  her  grate,  and  since  it  was  by  no  means 
very  strong  but  rather  intended  only  for  the  keeping 
of  less  vigorous  prisoners,  it  began  to  yield,  and  he 
was  about  to  tear  it  out  of  its  staples.  But  just  that 
instant  Dietegen  arrived  on  the  scene.  To  notice  the 
whole  proceeding  and  to  seize  the  madman  firmly 
by  the  shoulder  was  the  work  of  a  flash.  The  enraged 
scribe  yelled  like  one  possessed,  and  was  for  drawing  his 
poniard.  But  Dietegen  kept  an  iron  hold  on  him, 
grasping  his  hands  and  wrestling  with  him  until  the 
humpback  owned  himself  beaten.  Then  Dietegen 
was  uncertain  whether  to  hand  the  maddened  creature 
over  to  the  authorities  or  to  let  him  go.  Not  knowing 
the  circumstances  of  the  case  and  unwilling  to  cause 
new  compHcations  for  Kuengolt,  he  finally  allowed 
the  scribe  to  escape,  warning  him,  however,  on  pain 
of  death,  not  to  return  again  to  the  place.  Next 
Dietegen  woke  the  sexton  and  induced  him,  since 
autumn  with  its  cool  nights  was  approaching,  to 
afford  shelter  to  his  prisoner  henceforth  within  his 
own  dwelling,  in  order  to  avert  repetition  of  a  scene 
like  the  one  of  that  night. 

Therefore  Kuengolt  that  very  night  was  taken  in- 


i68  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

side,  and  secured  by  a  light  chain  to  the  foot  of  the 
stove.  The  latter  was  a  trim  structure  built  of  green 
tiling  and  showing  in  raised  outlines  the  biblical  story 
of  the  creation  of  man  and  his  fall  from  grace.  At  the 
four  corners  of  this  stove  there  stood  the  four  greater 
prophets  upon  twisted  pillars,  and  the  whole  of  it 
formed  a  somewhat  attractive  monument.  Against 
it  and  tied  to  it  by  her  gyves  Kuengolt  now  lay  stretched 
out  on  a  bench  for  her  couch. 

She  was  glad  of  having  obtained  a  more  sheltered 
spot,  and  more  still  of  having  been  rescued  out  of  the 
hands  of  this  evil  hunchback,  and  she  ascribed  the 
whole  of  Dietegen's  efforts  to  his  devoted  feelings  for 
her,  and  this  despite  the  fact  that  he  had  not  spoken 
a  syllable  to  her  through  it  all  and  had  gone  away 
immediately  after  the  new  arrangements  had  been 
effected. 

When,  however,  Kuengolt  had  thus  been  installed 
in  a  more  convenient  place,  a  new  admirer  of  her 
charms  turned  up  in  the  person  of  a  chaplain  whose 
duties  obliged  him  to  attend  to  a  number  of  small 
matters  in  the  church  building  close  by,  and  to  whose 
obligations  it  also  belonged  to  offer  ghostly  counsel 
and  consolation  to  the  sick  or  imprisoned.  This 
young  priest  came,  once  Kuengolt  was  an  inmate  of 
the  gravedigger's  household,  more  and  more  frequently, 
not  only  to  exorcise  her  and  to  expel  from  her  soul 
all  inclination  towards  magic,  sorcery  and  witchcraft, 
but  also  to  enjoy  incidentally  her  rare  feminine  charms 


DIETEGEN  169 

and  beauty.  He  strenuously  endeavored  to  dissuade 
her  from  using  any  more  love  philtres  and  similar 
means  forbidden  by  the  canons  of  the  Church,  but  in 
doing  so  became  thoroughly  imbued  with  her  physical 
attractions. 

For  of  late,  that  is,  since  these  trials  had  overtaken 
her,  the  maiden  had  wonderfully  grown  in  beauty. 
She  had  become  a  more  mature,  slender  and  spiritual- 
ized being,  albeit  pallor  had  succeeded  her  former 
healthy  complexion,  and  her  eyes  now  shone  with  a 
gentle  and  lovely  fire,  encircled  with  a  shadow  of 
sadness. 

Save  for  her  being  tied  to  the  foot  of  the  warm  stove, 
she  was  being  treated  in  every  respect  like  a  member 
of  the  sexton's  family,  among  the  members  of  which 
there  were  several  children,  and  when  the  chaplain 
came  to  visit  her,  he  was  usually  regaled  with  a  tank- 
ard of  ale  or  a  flask  of  drinkable  wine,  these  being 
supplied  by  the  forester,  Kuengolt's  father.  But 
whenever  the  reverend  divine  had  sufficiently  indulged 
in  his  admonishments,  had  partaken  of  the  refresh- 
ment provided  for  him,  and  still  remained  behind, 
evidently  to  enjoy  the  society  of  the  charming  peni- 
tent, there  would  be  some  queer  goings-on.  For 
the  chaplain  would  squeeze  and  caress  the  pretty  hand 
of  his  spiritual  daughter,  would  sigh  and  groan  audibly, 
and  then  Kuengolt,  comparing  this  sniffling  priest  in 
her  thoughts  with  the  stately  and  handsome  Dietegen 
whom  she  considered  in  truth  her  lover,  was  prone  to 


I70  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

scoff  at  the  inconspicuous  Levite,  but  in  a  good- 
natured  and  gentle  manner. 

In  this  way  it  came  about  that  Kuengolt,  after 
displaying  all  day  long  her  cheerful  and  somewhat 
sportive  disposition,  would  be  the  declared  favorite 
of  the  sexton's  household  in  the  evening,  the  big 
family  table  invariably  being  pushed  over  towards 
her  where  she  perforce  sat  tied  to  the  stove.  So  also 
it  was  on  New  Year's  Eve,  and  the  young  priest  was 
one  of  the  company,  so  that  the  sexton,  his  wife  and 
children,  together  with  the  chaplain,  were  seated  near 
the  prisoned  girl,  all  of  them  munching  walnuts  and 
sweet  honey  cakes,  and  Kuengolt  having  just  laughed 
at  something  the  priest  had  said,  the  latter  meanwhile 
holding  her  hand,  when  Dietegen  entered  the  room. 
He  brought  for  his  patron's  daughter  and  his  own 
whilom  playmate  some  dainties  from  home.  In 
coming  he  had  yielded  to  the  instinctive  promptings 
of  his  heart,  a  mingling  of  pity,  sympathy  and  affection, 
an  unconscious  longing  for  her  company,  and  the 
desire  had  been  strong  within  him  to  spend  at  least 
an  hour  that  evening  with  her,  this  being  the  first 
time  in  her  young  Hfe  she  had  to  pass  away  from 
home  on  a  night  like  that. 

But  when  he  saw  the  merry  scene  and  caught  sight 
of  the  chaplain's  caressing  hand,  his  blood  seemed  to 
freeze  within  him,  and  he  left  her  after  just  a  couple 
of  words  in  explanation  of  his  mission,  without  any 
more  ado.    In  going,  perhaps  unconsciously,  Dietegen 


DIETEGEN  171 

muttered  as  though  to  himself:  "Forgotten  is  for- 
gotten!'' 

Only  now  Kuengolt  suddenly  felt  the  full  force  and 
meaning  of  these  words  and  of  his  previous  devotion, 
and  her  heart  seemed  to  stand  still.  Pale  and  faint  she 
sank  down  on  her  bench  at  the  stove,  and  the  jolly 
gathering  broke  up.  Even  before  the  midnight  bells 
tolled  out  the  new  year  the  light  in  the  sexton's  win- 
dow was  gone,  and  the  girl  was  weeping  bitter  tears 
of  sorrow. 

From  that  night  on  she  remained  almost  forgotten 
by  the  forester  and  his  household.  Great  days  were 
on  the  way.  The  Swiss  federation  was  humming 
like  a  beehive  with  war's  alarum.  Those  events  were 
in  the  making  which  in  history  are  known  as  the  Bur- 
gundian  War. 

When  spring  had  come  and  the  great  day  of  Grandi- 
son  approached,  the  town  of  Seldwyla,  too,  like  Rue- 
chenstein  and  many  others,  sent  her  embattled  citizens 
into  the  field,  and  it  was  for  the  forester  as  well  as  for 
Dietegen  a  happy  release  to  be  able  to  leave  the  dis- 
turbed harmony  and  comfort  of  the  house  and  to  step 
into  the  clear,  rugged  atmosphere  of  war. 

With  firm  tread  they  both  went  along  with  their 
banner,  though  perhaps  more  silent  than  most,  and 
joined  with  the  other  hurrying  detachments  the 
mighty  battle  array  of  the  federated  Swiss  allies, 
coming  most  opportunely  to  the  armed  aid  of  the 
latter. 


172  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

Like  unto  an  iron  garden  stood  the  long  square 
of  the  fighting  men,  and  in  its  midst  waved  the  stand- 
ards and  pennons  of  the  cantons  and  towns  there 
represented.  In  serried  ranks  they  stood,  many 
thousands  of  them,  each  in  his  independence  and 
reliability  again  a  world  in  himself;  in  fearlessness 
and  will  each  could  depend  on  his  neighbor,  and  yet 
all  of  them  together,  after  all,  but  a  throng  of  fallible 
human  beings. 

There  was  the  spendthrift  and  the  light-hearted 
side  by  side  with  the  curmudgeon  and  the  cautious, 
each  awaiting  the  hour  of  supreme  sacrifice.  The 
quarrelsome  and  the  peaceable  had  to  stay  on  with 
equal  patience.  He  whose  heart  was  heavy  within 
his  bosom  was  no  more  taciturn  than  the  talkative 
and  the  braggart.  The  poor  and  indigent  stood  in 
equal  pride  next  to  the  wealthy  and  domineering. 
Whole  squares  made  up  of  neighbors  ordinarily  dis- 
agreeing were  here  one  single  unit.  And  envy  or 
jealousy  held  spear  or  halberd  as  manfully  and  firmly 
as  did  generosity  or  reconciliation,  and  unjust  as  just 
aimed  for  the  nonce  both  of  them  to  fulfil  the  duty 
immediately  urgent.  Whoever  had  done  with  life 
and  meant  to  sacrifice  without  regrets  the  mean  rem- 
nant of  it,  was  no  more  or  less  than  the  reckless  red- 
cheeked  youth  upon  whom  his  mother  had  built  all 
her  hope  and  in  whom  rested  the  future.  The  morose 
submitted  without  protest  to  the  silly  sallies  of  the 
jester  or  buffoon,  and  the  latter  on  his  part  saw  without 


DIETEGEN  173 

ridicule  the  prosaic  conceits  of  the  small-souled  philis- 
tine. 

Next  to  the  banner  of  Seldwyla  was  visible  that  of 
Ruechenstein,  so  that  the  serried  ranks  of  the  inimi- 
cable  neighbors  closely  touched  each  other,  and  the 
forester  who  was  leader  of  a  section  of  his  fellow  citizens 
and  formed  the  cornerstone  of  their  whole  formation, 
was  the  very  neighbor  of  the  council  scribe  of  Ruechen- 
stein, who  on  his  part  stood  at  the  tail  end  of  one  of 
the  ranks  of  his  townsmen.  But  at  this  hour  not  one 
of  them  all  seemed  to  recall  reasons  for  differences  or 
to  remember  the  past.  Dietegen  was  among  the 
sharpshooters  and  "lost  fellows,"  somewhat  outside 
these  regimental  formations,  and  was  already  in  the 
very  heat  of  combat  when  the  main  body  of  the  Swiss 
suddenly  began  to  move  and  to  plunge  right  into  the 
midst  of  battle,  in  order  to  administer  a  stupendous 
defeat  upon  one  of  the  most  brilliant  warrior-princes 
and  his  luxurious  and  splendid  army,  and  to  drive 
him  to  ignominous  flight  like  a  fabled  king. 

In  the  pressure  of  the  hard-fought  battle  the  for- 
ester with  some  of  his  gamekeepers  had  been  separated 
by  Burgundian  cavalry  from  his  banner  and  now 
fought  his  way  through  the  latter,  but  only  to  en- 
counter on  the  other  side  enemy  foot  soldiery.  In 
meeting  his  new  foe  the  doughty  warrior  set  to  work 
hewing  and  carving  out  for  himself  a  roomy  corner 
of  his  own,  and  he  had  already  achieved  this  task 
when  through  this  new  opening  a  belated  and  spent 


174  \  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

cannon  ball  from  the  hosts  of  Charles  the  Bold  came 
smashing  and  crushed  the  broad  manly  chest  of  the 
man,  so  that  within  another  moment  or  two  he  had 
found  in  peace  his  eternal  rest,  and  nothing  more 
troubled  him. 

When  Dietegen,  sound  and  hearty,  returned  from 
the  fight  and  from  following  the  fleeing  Burgundians, 
inquiring  for  his  friend  and  father,  he  found  his  body 
after  but  a  short  search,  and  he  buried  him  together 
with  his  trusty  sword  within  the  mighty  roots  of  a 
far-spreading  oak,  not  far  from  the  battlefield  on  the 
edge  of  a  grove. 

Then  he  returned  home  with  the  remainder  of  the 
Swiss  hosts,  and  because  of  his  intrepidity  and  the 
ability  shown  by  him  during  the  campaign  he  was  by 
the  town  authorities  made  provisional  chief  forester, 
and  was  given  the  house  that  had  been  his  home  for 
so  long  as  his  new  abode  and  to  supervise  the  assistants. 
With  the  death  of  his  dear  old  patron  his  household 
had  been  dissolved.  His  savings  and  accumulated 
wealth  had  vanished  during  the  last  few  years  pre- 
ceding his  death,  owing  to  careless  management,  and 
now  Kuengolt  had  nothing  left  in  the  world  save  her 
own  self  and  the  care  of  Dietegen,  provided  he  was 
able  to  give  it,  for  he  himself  was  but  poor. 
,  She  sat  day  after  day  at  her  stove,  leaning  her  cheeks 
against  its  tiles  representing,  in  four  or  five  groups 
that  recurred  around  the  whole  surface,  the  loss  of 
Paradise,  the  creation  of  Adam  and  of  Eve,  the  Tree 


DIETEGEN  175 

of  Knowledge,  and  the  expulsion  at  last  from  their 
blessed  abode.  When  the  girl's  face  ached  from  the 
rough  imprint  of  these  raised  images,  she  shifted  it 
by  turning  to  the  next  series,  always  and  always  con- 
templating them,  and  between  the  intervals  shedding 
tears  over  her  lot.  But  even  then  she  could  some- 
times not  help  laughing  outright  when  her  glance 
traveled  to  that  scene  showing  the  expulsion  from  the 
Garden  of  Eden.  For  by  reason  of  the  potter's  in- 
advertence this  picture  had  been  so  modelled  as  to 
give  to  Adam  instead  of  a  real  navel  on  his  abdomen, 
a  round  Httle  button  and  this  protuberance  repeating 
itself  twentyfold  on  the  surface  of  the  stove  excited  un- 
failingly her  playful  humor,  though  it  also  heightened 
her  discomfort  when  leaning  against  it. 

In  the  midst  of  her  fit  of  laughter,  however,  at  this 
harmless  blunder  poor  Kuengolt  was  invariably  over- 
come by  the  weight  of  her  misery,  which  would  con- 
strict heart  and  throat  alike,  and  this  conflict  of 
thought  and  impressions  produced  a  keen  physical 
pain,  so  that  her  eyes  grew  wet  and  her  face  would 
look  like  that  of  a  person  wanting  to  sneeze  yet  unable 
to.  So  that  at  last  she  avoided  looking  at  all  at  this 
particular  group. 

Meanwhile  the  great  battle  of  Murten  had  also 
been  fought,  and  at  the  same  time  Kuengolt's  term 
of  imprisonment  was  ended.  Dietegen  had  given 
instructions  for  herself  and  Violande  to  keep  house 
provisionally    at    the    forestry    lodge.     Violande    of 


176  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

late  had  become  rather  modest,  contrite  and  well- 
behaved,  for  to  her  feminine  sense  of  pride  it  had 
been  a  great  gratification  that  the  late  forester,  although 
he  had  postponed  the  wedding  indefinitely  and  per- 
haps unduly,  yet  had  wooed  her  and  proposed  marriage. 
But  Dietegen  himself  did  not  remain  at  home.  On 
the  contrary,  he  drifted  back  and  forth  at  the  various 
scenes  of  the  great  war  that  had  not  yet  ended. 

And  it  must  be  owned  that  he,  too,  during  all  these 
troublous  times,  was  not  without  faults.  The  rude 
customs  of  war,  combined  with  the  ever  gnawing 
grief  of  what  he  had  lost  of  his  one-time  hopes,  had 
molded  him  afresh,  so  that  a  certain  savagery  and 
relentlessness  had  crept  into  the  very  fibre  of  his 
being.  He  joined  that  throng  of  adventurous  young 
lads  who  under  the  name  of  "The  Giddy  Life"  had 
started  out  on  their  own  behalf  to  force  the  town  of 
Geneva  to  pay  out  that  amount  of  ransom  which  in 
the  peace  treaty  was  specified  as  its  share.  Out  of 
Burgundian  booty  that  had  fallen  to  him  he  had  had 
luxurious  garments  fashioned  for  himself.  Trailing 
behind  the  banner  of  the  Wild  Boar  (token  of  the 
aforementioned  wild  brotherhood)  he  wore  a  magnifi- 
cent surcoat  of  roseate  Burgundian  damask,  and  the 
cross  of  the  Swiss  Federation  on  chest  and  back  was 
made  of  heavy  argent  stuff  and  trimmed  with  seed 
pearls.  His  broad  velvet  hat  was  all  about  covered 
by  a  load  of  waving  ostrich  plumes,  taken  from  knightly 
plunder    in    camps    stormed    during    the    campaign. 


DIETEGEN  177 

Poniard  and  sword  were  suspended  from  costly  girdles 
ornamented  with  blood-red  rubies  or  emeralds.  And 
beside  a  ponderous  musket  he  carried  a  long  spear 
which  he  used  to  balance  himself  with  when  striding 
along.  His  broad  shoulders  and  straight,  sinewy 
body  looked  formidable  when  his  hawk  eyes  peered 
forth  under  his  beplumed  hat  at  a  cowardly  braggart 
or  in  order  to  strike  terror  in  controversy.  He  was 
fond  those  days  of  seizing  perhaps  a  shrieking  maid 
by  her  braids,  glancing  a  moment  at  her  startled  face, 
and  then  letting  her  go  again  at  a  venture. 

Dressed  up  in  this  gorgeous  style  he  had  also,  before 
joining  the  companions  of  The  Giddy  Life,  paid  a 
short  call  at  the  forestry  lodge  of  Seldwyla.  He  was 
the  very  image  of  a  nobly  descended,  pure-blooded 
warrior,  so  bold  and  strong,  elastic  and  sure  of  himself 
he  seemed. 

When  Kuengolt  saw  him  thus,  receiving  from  him 
just  one  short  cold  smile  in  passing,  such  as  stern  war 
had  fixed  on  his  features,  her  eyes  were  dazzled.  And 
while  subsequently  he  was  in  foreign  parts  she  loved 
nothing  better  than  to  ponder  the  past  and  to  live 
over  in  her  thoughts  the  happy  days  of  her  childhood. 
And  almost  at  all  times  her  recollection  dwelt  upon 
that  hour  up  on  the  steep  slope  where  the  Seldwyla 
ladies  had  caressed  and  fondled  little  Dietegen,  clad 
in  nothing  but  his  poor  sinner's  shift  and  just  escaped 
from  an  ignominious  death;  how  they  had  crowned 
him  with  wildflowers,  and  made  him  their  darling. 


178  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

Then  she  would  hasten  up  to  the  summit  of  that  hill, 
and  would  scan  the  far  horizon  towards  the  Southwest 
where,  as  people  said,  that  unconquerable  throng  of 
youths,  with  him  amongst  them,  was  doing  deeds  of 
valor. 

But  in  that  same  mountainous  landscape,  bifurcated 
as  it  was  by  the  Ruechenstein  territorial  limits,  that 
ominous  scribe,  Schafuerli,  was  frequently  roaming 
about.  This  man  was  still  thirsting  for  revenge 
because  of  the  injury  done  his  soul  and  his  reputation 
alike,  as  he  deemed;  for  though  he  had  escaped  that 
time  any  penalty  he  was  yet  looked  upon  with  dis- 
favor by  most  of  the  Ruechenstein  citizens  on  account 
of  the  homicide  committed  by  him.  He  still  lived  in 
hopes,  therefore,  of  making  amends  by  capturing 
the  "witch"  and  turning  her  over  for  expiation  to  the 
authorities  of  his  home  town.  When  then  one  day 
poor  Kuengolt  was  seated  carelessly  upon  the  very 
boundary  line  stone,  deep  in  her  meditations,  with  her 
feet  resting  on  Ruechenstein  soil,  the  vengeful  hunch- 
back quickly  stepped  out  from  some  bushes,  and  assisted 
by  a  municipal  guard,  took  her  prisoner  and  brought 
her  securely  bound  to  Ruechenstein  itself.  And 
there  she  had  to  submit  a  second  time  to  a  penal 
trial  for  having  with  her  witchery  caused  the  death, 
wholly  unatoned  according  to  their  notions,  of  the 
burgomaster's  son. 

In  Seldwyla  there  was,  notably  in  those  stirring 
war  times,  nobody  who  felt  at  all  any  obligation  to 


DIETEGEN  179 

interfere  in  her  behalf,  even  if  there  had  been  much 
of  a  hope  for  her.  Hence  the  rumor  soon  spread  that 
Kuengolt's  life  would  soon  pay  the  forfeit. 

And  it  was  Violande,  once  false  and  wicked,  who  now 
alone  began  to  bestir  herself  for  the  rescue  of  her 
young  relative.  Pity  and  repentance  moved  her 
to  the  resolve  to  go  in  search  of  the  only  human  being 
from  whom  prompt  aid  might  be  expected.  Thus 
she  went  off,  being  on  her  errand  night  and  day,  ever 
going  in  a  southwesterly  direction,  in  order  to  find  that 
band  of  overbold  adventurers  yclept  "The  Giddy 
Life,"  with  Dietegen  in  their  midst,  as  she  knew. 
And  since  rumor  was  at  all  times  quite  busy  with  that 
mettlesome  brotherhood  she  soon  found  herself  in 
the  right  neighborhood,  and  at  last  came  across  Diete- 
gen himself,  just  as  he  was  throwing  dice  for  money 
and  booty  with  some  of  his  hardy  companions  in  a 
tavern. 

Violande  at  once  let  him  know  about  the  ill-starred 
excursion  of  Kuengolt  and  about  the  danger  now 
threatening  her  on  the  part  of  the  Ruechensteiners,  and 
against  her  own  expectation  he  listened  attentively. 
But  his  reply  was  discouraging. 

"I  am  powerless  to  do  anything  in  this  case,"  he 
remarked,  rather  coldly.  "For  this  is  a  matter  of  law, 
and  since  the  Seldwyla  people  themselves  do  not 
choose  to  intervene,  I  should  not  be  able  to  find  even 
ten  trusty  comrades-in-arms  to  follow  me  and  help 
free  the  child." 


i8o  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

Violande,  though,  with  that  special  knowledge  which 
she  had  acquired  from  her  former  experiences,  inter- 
rupted him. 

"There  is  no  need  of  force  in  this  case,"  quoth 
she.  "The  Ruechenstein  people  have  from  old  a 
law  which  says  that  any  woman  sentenced  to  death 
may  be  saved  by  a  man  and  delivered  over  to  him  if 
he  is  willing  and  able  to  wed  her  on  the  spot." 

Dietegen  gazed  at  Violande  long  and  in  amazement 
wearing  the  while  his  sneering  soldier's  smile. 

At  last  he  spoke. 

"I  am  then  to  marry  a  sort  of  courtesan,"  he  growled 
darkly,  twirling  his  small  moustache  daintily  and 
putting  on  an  incredulous  mien,  while  yet  at  the 
same  time  a  look  of  tenderness  beamed  forth  from  his 
eyes. 

"Do  not  say  so,"  put  in  Violande,  "for  it  is  not  so." 

And  bursting  into  tears  she  seized  Dietegen's  hand, 
and  continued:  "In  so  far  as  she  is  to  blame  it  is  my 
own  fault.  Let  me  here  confess  it,  that  I  wished  to 
separate  you  and  her,  for  I  wanted  you  two  out  of  the 
house  in  order  to  marry  the  father.  And  that  is  why 
I  led  the  child  into  all  sorts  of  folly." 

"But  she  ought  not  to  have  let  you  do  so,"  exclaimed 
Dietegen.  "Her  parents  indeed  came  of  good  stock 
and  deserved  respect,  but  she  has  gone  astray." 

"But  I  swear  to  you  on  my  hope  of  salvation,"  cried 
Violande,  "it  is  as  if  a  cleansing  fire  had  passed  over 
her,  and  all  that  once  disfigured  her  has  been  removed. 


DIETEGEN  i8i 

She  is  good  and  true,  and  she  is  so  much  in  love  with 
you  that  she  long  ago  would  have  died  if  you  also  had 
left  this  world  like  her  father.  Besides,  have  you  quite 
forgotten  what  you  owe  her?  Would  you  now  stand 
here  in  front  of  me,  strong  and  handsome,  if  she  had 
not  rescued  you  out  of  the  hangman's  coffin?  And 
mind  you  too  of  Kuengolt's  kind  mother  and  of  her 
excellent  father,  who  have  educated  and  loved  you 
like  their  own  son.  And  are  you  entitled  to  be  judge 
over  the  failings  of  a  frail  woman?  Have  you  your- 
self never  done  wrong?  Have  you  never  slain  a  man 
in  battle  when  there  was  no  need  of  it?  Have  you 
never  laid  in  ashes  the  hut  of  a  defenceless  and  poor 
person  during  these  wars?  And  even  though  you 
have  not  done  any  of  these  things,  have  you  always 
shown  mercy  where  you  might?" 

At  this  earnest  plea  Dietegen  reddened,  and  then 
said:  "I  will  not  owe  anything  I  can  pay  off,  and  will 
leave  no  debts  behind  me.  If  it  be  as  you  say  re- 
garding this  Ruechenstein  legal  custom,  I  will  go  and 
help  the  child  and  take  her  to  my  heart.  May  God 
then  help  me  and  her  if  she  is  no  longer  able  to  conduct 
herself  properly!" 

Then  Dietegen  gave  a  sum  of  money  to  Violande, 
who  was  quite  exhausted  from  the  fatigues  of  her 
journey,  and  who  needed  rest  and  nourishment  to 
strengthen  herself  for  her  return  home.  But  he  him- 
self, only  seizing  his  weapons,  started  off  instantly 


i82  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

right  across  the  country,  and  had  no  rest  or  sleep  until 
he  discerned  the  dark  towers  and  walls  of  Ruechen- 
stein  rising  before  his  eyes. 

There  they  had  not  delayed  matters.  They  had, 
after  the  lapse  of  a  few  days  consumed  with  legal 
formalities,  condemned  Kuengolt,  who  had  mean- 
while been  confined  in  an  old  tower,  to  death.  But 
inasmuch  as  her  father  had  been  of  blameless  life  and 
reputation  and  had,  moreover,  fallen  as  a  hero 
battling  for  his  country,  the  sentence  was  that  she 
would,  as  a  sign  of  unusual  mercy,  be  merely  beheaded, 
instead  of  being  brought  from  life  to  death  by  fire 
or  the  wheel,  or  by  some  other  of  their  customary 
procedures. 

Accordingly  she  was  taken  to  the  place  of  execution, 
just  outside  the  great  gate  of  the  town,  barefooted 
and  clothed  in  nought  but  a  delinquent's  shift.  All 
adown  her  back  and  neck  floated  her  heavy  golden 
strands  of  hair.  Step  for  step  she  went  her  death  path, 
in  the  midst  of  her  tormentors,  several  times  stumbhng, 
but  of  good  heart  and  steady  courage,  since  she  had 
quite  submitted  to  her  sad  fate  and  had  abandoned 
all  hope  of  life  or  happiness. 

"Thus  luck  may  turn!"  she  was  saying  to  herself, 
with  a  slight  smile,  but  just  then  she  was  thinking 
again  of  Dietegen,  and  sweet  tears  rained  down  her 
cheeks.  Memory  came  back  to  her  of  how  he  owed  his 
vigorous  life  to  her,  and,  so  good  and  unselfish  she  had 
grown  in  adversity,  she  felt  glad  of  it  and  kindly 
towards  him. 


DIETEGEN  183 

Already  she  had  been  placed  in  the  fatal  chair  and 
was,  in  a  sense,  thankful  of  the  chance  to  renew  her 
drooping  strength  before  receiving  the  death  stroke. 
For  the  last  time  she  gazed  ahead  at  the  glories  of  the 
land,  at  the  hazy  chain  of  mountains  and  the  dark- 
some woods.  Then  the  headsman  tied  up  her  eyes, 
and  was  on  the  point  of  cutting  off  the  wealth  of  her 
hair,  or  as  much  of  it  as  protruded  from  under  the 
cloth.  But  he  held  his  hand,  for  Dietegen  was  there, 
only  a  short  distance  away,  shouting  with  all  his 
strength  and  waving  his  spear  and  hat  to  draw  atten- 
tion. At  the  same  time,  though,  to  insure  delay, 
he  tore  his  musket  from  the  shoulder  and  sent  a  shot 
over  the  executioner's  head.  Astonished  and  af- 
frighted both  judges  and  headsman  stopped  in  their 
doings,  and  all  around  the  spectators  took  firm  hold 
of  their  weapons.  But  Dietegen  did  not  hesitate. 
In  a  few  bounds  he  had  arrived  at  the  place,  and  had 
climbed  to  the  bloody  scaffold,  so  that  under  his 
weight  it  nearly  broke.  Seizing  Kuengolt  in  her 
chair  by  the  hair  and  shoulder,  since  her  hands  were 
already  fastened  behind,  he  for  a  moment  had  to  re- 
cover his  breath  before  being  able  to  speak. 

The  Ruechensteiners,  as  soon  as  assured  that  there 
was  but  a  single  man  and  that  no  murderous  attack 
was  intended,  grew  attentive  and  waited  for  further 
developments.  When  at  last  he  had  stated  his  busi- 
ness, the  judges  retired  to  take  counsel. 

Not  only  their  own  habit  of  always  strictly  con- 


i84  SELDWYLA   FOLKS 

forming  with  customs  firmly  rooted  in  the  past,  but 
also  the  reputation  enjoyed  by  Dietegen  himself  in 
those  warlike  days  and  his  whole  appearance  and 
demeanor,  were  in  favor  of  adjusting  this  matter 
according  to  his  wishes,  once  the  first  annoyance  at  the 
unceremonious  interruption  of  so  solemn  a  spectacle 
as  an  execution  had  been  overcome.  Even  the  ran- 
corous scribe,  Hans  Schafuerli,  who  had  put  in  an 
appearance  to  make  sure  of  the  death  of  the  witch, 
hid  from  the  grim  man  of  war,  whose  heavy  hand  he 
feared  despite  his  ordinarily  daring  temper. 

The  same  priest  who  a  short  while  back  had  been 
praying  for  the  poor  delinquent,  now  was  told  to  per- 
form the  wedding  ceremony  on  the  very  scaffold 
itself.  Kuengolt  was  untied,  placed  upon  her  swaying 
feet,  and  then  asked  whether  she  was  willing  to  marry 
this  man  who  sought  her  as  his  lawful  wife,  and  to 
follow  him  through  life. 

Mute  she  looked  up  to  him  who,  after  the  cloth 
had  been  removed  from  her  eyes  was  the  first  object 
she  saw  again  of  this  world  that  she  had  taken  leave 
from  a  few  moments  before,  and  it  seemed  to  her 
that  it  must  all  be  a  delicious  dream.  But  in  order 
to  miss  nothing  even  if  it  should  only  turn  out  a  dream, 
she  nodded,  being  still  unable  to  speak,  with  great 
presence  of  mind,  three  or  four  times  in  rapid  suc- 
cession, in  a  ghost-like  manner,  so  that  the  severe 
councilmen  of  Ruechenstein  were  touched,  and  to 
make  quite  sure  she  repeated  her  nodding  another 


DIETEGEN  185 

few  times.  And  tremblingly  Kuengolt  was  supported 
during  the  wedding  ceremony  by  the  same  sinister 
men  who  had  come  to  witness  her  shameful  death. 
But  she  became  his  wife  according  to  all  the  established 
forms  of  the  Church. 

And  now,  this  done,  she  was  handed  over  to  Dietegen 
"with  life  and  limb,"  as  the  phrase  went,  just  as  she 
was,  without  any  later  claim  of  dowry  or  recompense, 
damages,  or  excuse,  against  his  payment  of  fees  for  the 
priest  and  of  money  for  ten  gallons  of  wine  for  heads- 
man and  assistants,  as  a  wedding  gift,  and  of  three 
pounds  of  pennies  for  a  new  jerkin  for  the  headsman. 

After  paying  all  this,  Dietegen  took  his  wife  by  the 
hand  and  left  with  her  the  place  of  execution. 

Since  he  had  to  take  her,  however,  just  as  she  was, 
and  she  was  not  only  barefooted  but  merely  clad  in 
her  death  shift,  the  season  also  being  early  and  the 
weather  chilly,  she  was  suffering  from  this  and  unable 
to  keep  step  with  her  husband.  He  lifted  her,  there- 
fore, from  the  ground  to  his  arms,  pushed  his  hat  back 
from  his  forehead,  and  then  she  put  her  arms  around 
his  neck,  leaned  her  head  against  his,  and  immediately 
fell  asleep,  while  he  used  his  long  spear  as  a  staff  in 
his  other  hand.  Thus  he  walked  swiftly  along  on  the 
mountain  path,  all  alone  by  himself,  and  he  felt  how 
in  her  sleep  she  was  weeping  softly,  and  how  her  breath 
grew  less  agitated.  At  last  her  tears  ran  along  his 
own  face,  and  then  a  strange  illusion  as  though  blessed 
bliss  were  baptising  him  anew  came  over  him.     And 


i86  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

this  rough,  war-hardened  man,  for  all  his  self-command, 
felt  his  own  tears  staining  his  ruddy  bearded  chin. 
His  was  the  Hfe  he  bore  in  his  arms,  and  he  held  it 
as  if  God's  whole  world  were  in  his  keeping. 

When  they  arrived  on  the  spot  where  he  himself, 
a  small  child,  had  sat  among  the  women  in  his  scanty 
garb  and  where  more  recently  poor  Kuengolt  had  been 
taken  prisoner,  the  March  sun  shone  clear  and  warm, 
and  he  concluded  to  take  a  short  rest.  Dietegen 
sat  down  on  the  boundary  stone,  and  let  his  burden 
slowly  glide  down  on  his  knees.  The  first  glance 
which  she  gave  him,  and  the  first  poor  words  which 
she  stammered,  were  proof  to  him  that  he  not  only 
had  truly  fulfilled  a  sacred  duty  towards  her  by  what 
he  had  done,  but  that  in  addition  he  had  undertaken 
another,  an  even  more  sacred  one,  namely,  to  conduct 
himself  through  life  in  such  a  manner  as  to  be  worthy 
of  the  happy  lot  that  had  fallen  to  him  in  becoming 
the  husband  of  the  charming  creature  at  his  side. 
And  this  he  silently  vowed  to  do. 

The  soil  around  the  boundary  stone  was  already 
thickly  speckled  with  primroses  and  wild  violets, 
the  sky  was  cloudless,  and  not  a  sound  broke  the 
still  air  but  the  cheery  song  of  the  finches  in  the  wood. 

So  they  spoke  no  more  for  some  time,  but  both 
breathed  the  soft  air  that  filled  their  lungs  with  new 
hope  and  life,  but  at  last  they  rose,  and  because  from 
now  on  there  was  but  the  velvety  moss-covered  ground 
to  traverse  which  led  through  the  beeches  down  to 


DIETEGEN  187 

the  forestry  lodge,  Kuengolt  was  able  to  walk  by  his 
side.  Suddenly  she  touched  her  golden  hair,  being 
afraid  that  it  had  been  shorn  by  the  headsman.  But 
as  she  still  found  it  unharmed,  she  halted  for  a  mo- 
ment, saying:  "May  I  not  have  a  little  bridal  wreath?" 
And  she  looked  at  her  husband  with  a  half-roguish 
smile. 

He  let  his  eyes  roam  all  about  him,  and  discovered 
a  bunch  of  snowdrops  in  full  bloom.  Quickly  he  went 
and  cut  off  enough  of  the  flowers  to  weave  into  a 
coronet  for  his  bride,  and  then  he  carefully  placed 
it  on  her  head,  saying:  "It  is  not  much.  It  is  out 
of  fashion.  But  let  this  wreath  be  a  token  to  us  and 
all  the  world  that  our  domestic  honor  will  remain 
as  spotless  as  these.  Whoever  by  word  or  deed  will 
harm  it,  let  him  pay  the  penalty!" 

Then  he  kissed  her  once,  firmly  and  with  a  look  that 
boded  ill  to  any  disturber  of  his  peace,  right  under 
the  wreath,  and  she  looked  up  at  him,  satisfied  and 
with  confidence,  and  then  they  two  resumed  again 
their  walk. 

The  forestry  lodge  they  found  empty  and  deserted. 
The  house  servants  had  left  it  unguarded,  partly 
from  mourning  Kuengolt  whose  death  on  the  scaffold 
they  had  assumed  as  certain,  partly  from  neglect  of 
their  duty.  None  of  them  returned  under  its  roof  that 
day.  But  Kuengolt  and  Dietegen  did  not  miss  them. 
She  now  with  every  minute  recovered  more  and  more 
from  the  numbing  effects  of  her  recent  miseries,  and 


i88  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

to  feel  herself  at  last  in  truth  the  mistress  of  this  house 
and  clothed  with  wifely  dignity  poured  balm  into  her 
soul.  Like  a  squirrel  she  busied  herself,  hurried 
from  chamber  to  chamber,  from  closet  to  closet, 
counting  her  treasures,  investigating  all.  Soon  she 
returned  dressed  in  the  splendid  bridal  costume  of 
her  mother,  the  one  she  had  told  Dietegen  about  that 
night  when  they,  both  small  children,  had  shared  the 
same  cot  on  the  night  of  his  first  arrival,  and  she 
shone  like  a  queen  in  it.  But  next  she  set  the  table, 
using  the  linen  which  her  mother  had  always  reserved 
for  festive  occasions,  and  placed  in  platters  and  dishes 
on  the  snowy  surface  what  she  had  been  able  to  find 
in  the  house. 

All  by  themselves,  with  no  noise  from  the  outside 
world  to  disturb  them,  they  then  sat  down,  she  in  her 
wreath,  and  he  with  weapons  laid  aside,  and  ate  the 
simple  meal  prepared  by  her.  And  then  they  went 
to  bed  just  as  peacefully. 

"Thus  luck  may  turn!"  she  said,  the  second  time  that 
day,  as  she  lay  content  by  the  side  of  her  beloved. 
For  after  all  there  was  a  bit  of  roguishness  left  in  her 
heart,  despite  all  she  had  gone  through. 

Dietegen  rose  to  be  a  man  of  great  and  generally 
acknowledged  reputation  as  a  warrior  and  military 
leader  in  those  troubled  days.  He  was  not  much 
better  than  others  of  his  ilk  in  those  times,  but  rather 
subject  to  similar  failings.    He  became  a  doughty 


DIETEGEN  189 

captain  in  the  field,  taking  service  with  or  against 
various  countries  and  belligerents,  according  to  what 
seemed  to  him  good  and  where  his  own  advantage 
lay.  He  hired  mercenaries,  earned  gold  and  rich 
booty,  and  so  he  drifted  from  one  war  to  another, 
conducted  one  campaign  after  the  other,  always 
fighting  and  seeing  the  horrors  of  warfare  closely. 
And  in  so  doing  he  did  precisely  what  the  first  men  of 
his  country  did  in  those  warlike  days,  and  he  grew 
steadily  in  power  and  influence,  and  his  word  and  his 
mailed  fist  were  held  in  awe  in  all  those  parts. 

But  with  his  wife  he  lived  in  uninterrupted  con- 
cord and  affection,  and  the  honor  of  his  hearth  was 
never  questioned.  And  she  bore  him  a  number  of 
strong  and  militant  children,  all  endowed  with  the 
vigorous  spirit  alive  in  father  and  mother.  And  of 
their  descendants  there  are  flourishing  even  at  this 
day  a  number  in  sundry  countries,  rich  in  substance 
and  potency,  in  countries  whither  the  warlike  gifts 
of  their  forbears  had  blown  them. 

Violande  on  her  part  soon  after  Dietegen's  and 
Kuengolt's  union,  which  latter  had  been  in  such 
large  part  brought  about  by  herself,  retired  to  a  veri- 
table convent,  and  became  a  nun  for  good  and  all. 
To  the  children  of  the  couple  she  sent  quite  often 
all  sorts  of  goodies  and  tidbits.  She  also  rather  re- 
tained her  habit  of  being  interested  in  the  great  events 
of  the  day,  and  in  influencing  them  by  dint  of  feminine 
intrigues  more  or  less.     She  liked  to  sit  along  with 


iQO  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

other  guests  of  distinction,  respected  as  a  woman 
of  shrewd  and  subtle  mind  and  with  a  huge  golden 
cross  on  her  bosom,  on  banquet  days  at  Dietegen's 
house,  and  she  would  demurely  advise  Dietegen, 
now  adorned  not  only  with  a  long  and  majestic  beard, 
but  also  with  the  heavy  golden  chain  denoting  knight- 
hood, in  matters  of  state.  Her  counsel  would  still 
flow  as  mellifluously  as  ever,  and  her  politeness  re- 
mained proverbial. 

How  Kuengolt  looked  at  the  beginning  of  the  six- 
teenth century,  after  many  years  of  happy  married 
life,  may  still  be  studied  from  the  painting  of  a  great 
artist  which  hangs  among  others  in  a  well-known 
collection  and  which  is  expressly  designated  as  her 
portrait.  One  sees  there  a  slim  elegant  patrician 
woman,  the  beautiful  lineaments  of  the  face  bespeak- 
ing plainly  deep  seriousness  and  uncommon  under- 
standing, but  tempered  by  a  gentle  and  somewhat 
roguish  humor. 

She  also  died  before  old  age  had  claimed  her,  like 
her  mother  in  consequence  of  a  chill.  That  was  when 
her  husband,  in  one  of  the  campaigns  for  the  posses- 
sion of  Milan,  had  perished  and  was  buried  in  the 
cemetery  next  a  small  chapel  in  Lombardy.  Kuengolt 
hastened  there,  intending  to  have  a  monument  in  his 
honor  erected;  but  indeed  she  spent  two  long  nights 
at  his  tomb,  with  a  ceaseless  rainstorm  raging,  thus 
contracting  a  fever  that  carried  her  off  within  a  couple 
of  days,  and  she  thus  lies  next  to  her  husband  in 
Italian  soil. 


ROMEO  AND   JULIET  OF   THE  VILLAGE 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE 

NEAR  the  fine  river  which  flows  along  half  an 
hour's  distance  from  Seldwyla,  rises  in  a  long 
stretch  a  headland  which  finally,  itself  carefully  culti- 
vated, is  lost  in  the  fertile  plain.  Some  distance 
away  at  the  foot  of  this  rise  there  lies  a  village,  to 
which  belong  many  large  farms,  and  across  the  hillock 
itself  there  were,  years  ago,  three  splendid  holdings, 
like  unto  as  many  giant  ribbons,  side  by  side. 

One  sunny  September  morning  two  peasants  were 
plowing  on  two  of  these  vast  fields,  the  two  which 
stretched  along  the  middle  one.  The  middle  one 
itself  seemed  to  have  lain  fallow  and  waste  for  a  long, 
long  time,  for  it  was  thickly  covered  with  stones,  bowl- 
ders and  tall  weeds,  and  a  multitude  of  winged  insects 
were  humming  around  and  over  it.  The  two  peasants 
who  on  both  sides  of  this  huge  wilderness  were  fol- 
lowing their  plows,  were  big,  bony  men  of  near  forty, 
and  at  the  first  glance  one  could  tell  them  as  men  of 
substance  and  well-regulated  circumstances.  They 
wore  short  breeches  made  of  strong  canvas,  and  every 
fojd  in  these  garments  seemed  to  be  carved  out  of 
rock.  When  they  hit  against  some  obstacle  with 
their  plow  their   coarse  shirt   sleeves  would    tremble 


194  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

slightly,  while  the  closely  shaved  faces  continued  to 
look  steadfastly  into  the  sunlight  ahead.    Tranquilly 
they  would  go   on  accurately  measuring  the  width 
of  the  furrow,  and  now  and  then  looking  around  them 
if  some  unusual  noise  reached  their  ears.     They  would 
then  peer  attentively  in  the  direction  indicated,  while 
all  about  them  the  country  spread  out  measureless 
and  peaceful.     Sedately  and  with  a  certain  uncon- 
scious grace  they  would  set  one  foot  before  the  other, 
slowly  advancing,  and  neither  of  them  ever  spoke  a 
word  unless  it  was  to  briefly  instruct  the  hired  man  who 
was  leading  the  horses.    Thus  they  resembled  each 
other  strongly  from  a  distance;    for  they  fitly  repre- 
sented the  peculiar  type  of  people  of  the  district,  and 
at  first  sight  one  might  have  distinguished  them  from 
each  other  only  by  this  one  fact  that  he  on  the  one 
side  wore  the  peaked  fold  of  his  white  cap  in  front  and 
the  other  had  it  hanging  down  his  neck.    But  even 
this  kept  changing,  since  they  were  plowing  in  oppo- 
site directions;    for  when  they  arrived  at  the  end  of 
the  new  furrow  up  on  high,  and  thus  passed  each  other, 
the  one  who  now  strode  against  the  strong  east  wind 
had  his  cap  tip  turned  over  until  it  sat  in  the  back  of 
the  bull  neck,  while  the  second  one,  who  had  now 
the  wind  behind  him,  got  the  tip  of  his  cap  reversed. 
There  was  alsa  a  middling  moment,  so  to  speak,  when 
both  caps  of  shining  white  seemed  to  flare  skywards 
like  shimmering  flames.     Thus  they  plowed  and  plowed 
in  restful   diligence,  and   it  was  a  fine  sight  in  this 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    195 

still  golden  September  weather  to  see  them  every 
short  while  passing  each  other  on  the  summit  of 
the  hill,  then  easily  and  slowly  drifting  farther  and 
farther  apart,  until  both  disappeared  like  sinking  stars 
beyond  the  curve  of  the  rise,  only  to  reappear  a  bit 
later  in  precisely  the  same  fashion. 

When  they  found  a  stone  in  their  furrows  they  threw 
it  on  the  fallow  field  between  them,  doing  so  leisurely 
and  accurately,  like  men  who  have  learnt  by  habit 
to  gauge  the  correct  distance.  But  this  occurred 
rarely,  for  this  waste  field  was  apparently  already 
loaded  with  about  all  the  pebbles,  bowlders  and  rocks 
to  be  discovered  in  the  neighborhood. 

In  this  quiet  way  the  long  forenoon  was  nearly  spent 
when  there  approached  from  the  village  a  tiny  vehicle. 
So  small  it  looked  at  first  when  it  began  to  climb  up 
the  height  that  it  seemed  a  toy.  And  indeed,  it  was 
just  that  in  a  sense,  for  it  was  a  baby  carriage,  painted 
in  vivid  green,  in  which  the^cJiildreJX-QfJthe  jtwo  plowers, 
a  sturdy  little  youngster  and  a  slip  of  a  small  girl, 
jointly  brought  the  lunch  for  their  parent's  delectation. 
For  each  of  the  two  fathers  there  lay  a  fine  appetizing 
loaf  in  the  cart,  wrapped  neatly  in  a  clean  napkin, 
a  flask  of  cool  wine,  with  glasses,  and  some  smaller 
tidbits  as  well,  all  o^  which  the  tender  farmer's  wife 
had  sent  along  for  the  hard-working  husband.  But 
there  were  other  things  as  well  in  the  little  vehicle: 
apples  and  pears  which  the  two  children  had  picked 
up  on  the  way  and  out  of  which  they  had  taken  a  bite 


196  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

or  so,  and  a  whplly-.  naked  (doU  with  only  one  leg  and 
a  face  entirely  soiled  and  besmeared,  and  which  sat 
self-satisfied  in  this  carriage  like  a  dainty  young 
lady  and  allowed  herself  to  be  transported  in  this 
way.  This  small  vehicle  after  sundry  difficulties 
and  delays  at  last  arrived  in  the  shade  of  a  high  growth 
of  underbrush  which  luxuriated  there  at  the  edge  of 
the  big  field,  and  now  it  was  time  to  take  a  look  at  the 
two  drivers.  One  was  a  boy  of  seven,  the  other  a 
little  girl  of  five,  both  of  them  sound  and  healthy,  and 
else  there  was  nothing  remarkable  about  them  except 
that  they  had  very  fine  eyes  and  the  girl,  besides,  a 
rather  tawny  complexion  and  curly  dark  hair,  and  the 
expression  of  her  little  face  was  ardent  and  trustful. 

The  plowers  meanwhile  had  also  reached  once  more 
the  top,  given  their  horses  a  provender  of  clover,  and 
left  their  plows  in  the  half-done  furrow;  then  as  good 
neighbors  they  went  to  partake  jointly  of  the  tempt- 
ing collation,  and  meeting  there  they  gave  greeting, 
for  until  that  moment  they  had  not  yet  spoken  to 
each  other  on  that  day. 

While  they  ate,  slowly  but  with  a  keen  appetite, 
and  of  their  food  also  shared  vith  the  children,  the 
latter  not  budging  as  long  as  there  were  eatables  in 
sight,  they  allowed  their  glances  •  o  roam  near  and  far, 
and  their  eyes  rested  on  the  town  lying  there  spread 
out  in  its  wreath  of  mountains,  with  its  haze  of  shiny 
smoke.  For  the  plentiful  noond?y  meal  which  the 
Seldwylians   prepared   each   and   every   day   used   to 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE     197 

conjure  up  a  silvery  cloud  of  smoke  surrounding  the 
roofs  and  visible  from  afar,  and  this  would  float  right 
along  the  sides  of  their  mountains. 

"These  loafers  at  Seldwyla  are  again  living  on  the 
fat  of  the  land,"  said  Manz,  one  of  the  two  peasants, 
and  Marti,  the  other,  replied:  "Yesterday  a  man 
called  on  me  on  account  of  these  fallow  fields." 

"From  the  district  council?  Yes,  he  saw  me  too," 
rejoined  Manz. 

"Hm,  and  probably  also  said  you  might  use  the 
land  and  pay  the  rental  to  the  council?" 

"Yes,  until  it  should  have  been  decided  whom  the 
land  belongs  to  and  what  is  to  be  done  with  it.  But 
I  wouldn't  think  of  it,  with  the  land  in  the  condition 
it's  in,  and  told  him  they  might  sell  the  land  and 
keep  the  money  till  the  owner  had  been  found,  which 
probably  will  never  be  done.  For,  as  we  know, 
whatever  is  once  in  the  hands  of  the  custodian  at 
Seldwyla,  does  not  easily  leave  it  again.  Besides,  the 
whole  matter  is  rather  involved,  I've  heard.  But  these 
Seldwyla  folks  would  like  nothing  better  than  to  re- 
ceive every  little  while  some  money  that  they  could 
spend  in  their  foolish  way.  Of  course,  that  they 
could  also  do  with  the  sum  received  from  a  sale.  How- 
ever, we  here  would  not  be  so  stupid  as  to  bid  very 
high  for  it,  and  then  at  least  we  should  know  whom 
the  land  belongs  to." 
f^  "Just  what  I  think  myself,  and  I  said  the  same 
thing  to  the  fellow," 


.198  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

They  kept  silent  for  a  moment,  and  then  Manz 
added:  "A  pity  it  is,  all  the  same,  that  this  fine  soil 
is  thus  going  to  waste  every  year.  I  can  scarce  bear 
to  see  it.  This  has  now  been  going  on  for  a  score  of 
years,  and  nobody  cares  a  rap  about  it,  it  seems,  for 
here  in  the  village  there  is  really  nobody  who  has 
any  claim  to  it,  nor  does  anybody  know  what  has 
become  of  the  children  of  that  hornblower,  the  one 
who  went  to  the  dogs." 

"Hm,"  muttered  Marti,  "that  is  as  may  be.  When 
I  have  a  look  at  the  black  fiddler,  the  one  who  is  a 
vagrant  for  a  spell,  and  then  at  other  times  plays 
the  fiddle  at  dances,  I  could  almost  swear  that  he  is 
a  grandson  of  that  hornblower,  and  who,  of  course, 
does  not  know  that  he  is  entitled  to  these  fields.  And 
what  in  the  world  could  he  do  with  them?  To  go  on 
a  month's  spree,  and  then  to  be  as  badly  off  as  before. 
Besides,  what  can  one  say  for  sure?  After  all,  there 
is  nothing  to  prove  it." 

"Indeed,  yes,  one  might  do  harm  by  interfering," 
rejoined  Manz.  "As  it  is  we  have  to  do  with  our 
own  affairs,  and  it  takes  trouble  enough  now  to  keep 
this  hobo  from  acquiring  home  rights  in  our  com- 
mune. All  the  time  they  want  to  burden  us  with  that 
expense.  But  if  his  folks  once  have  joined  the  stray 
sheep,  let  him  keep  to  them  and  play  his  fiddle  for  a 
living.  How  can  we  really  know  whether  he  is  the 
hornblower's  grandson  or  no?  As  far  as  I'm  concerned, 
although  I  believe  I  can  recognize  the  old  fellow  in 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    199 

his  dark  face,  I  say  to  myself:  It  is  human  to  err, 
and  the  slightest  scrap  of  a  legal  document,  a  bit  of 
a  baptismal  record  or  something,  would  be  to  my 
mind  better  proof  than  ten  sinful  human  faces.'' 

"My  opinion  exactly,"  opined  Marti,  "although 
he  says  it  is  not  his  fault  that  he  never  was  baptized. 
But  are  we  to  lug  our  baptismal  fount  around  in  the 
woods?  No  indeed.  That  stands  immovable  in  the 
church,  and  on  the  other  hand,  to  carry  around  the 
dead  we  have  the  stretcher  which  is  always  hanging 
from  the  wall.  As  it  is,  we  are  too  many  now  in  our 
village  and  shall  soon  need  another  schoolmaster." 

With  that  the  colloquy  and  the  midday  meal  of  the 
two  peasants  came  to  an  end,  and  they  now  rose  and 
prepared  to  finish  the  rest  of  their  day's  task.  The 
two  children,  on  the  other  hand,  having  vainly  planned 
to  drive  home  with  their  fathers,  now  pulled  their 
little  vehicle  into  the  shade  of  the  linden  saplings 
close  by,  and  next  undertook  a  campaign  of  adventure 
and  discovery  into  the  vast  wilderness  of  the  waste 
fields.  To  them  this  wilderness  was  interminable, 
with  its  immense  weeds,  its  overgrown  flower  stalks, 
and  its  huge  piles  of  stone  and  rock.  After  wander- 
ing, hand  in  hand,  for  some  time  in  the  very  center 
of  this  waste,  and  after  having  amused  themselves 
in  swinging  their  joined  hands  over  the  top  of  the 
giant  thistles,  they  at  last  sat  down  in  the  shade  of 
a  perfect  forest  of  weeds,  and  the  little  girl  bega: 
to  clothe  her  doll  with  the  long  leaves  of  some  of  these 


)t 


200  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

plants,  so  that  the  doll  soon  wore  a  beautiful  habit  of 
green,  with  fringed  borders,  while  a  solitary  poppy 
blossom  she  had  found  was  drawn  over  dolly's  head 
as  a  brilliant  bonnet,  and  this  she  tied  fast^with  a 
grass  blade  for  ribbon.  Now  the  little  ^dojl  looked 
exactly  like  a  good  fairy,  especially  after  being  further 
ornamented  with  a  necklace  and  a  girdle  of  small 
scarlet  berries.  Then  she  sat  it  down  high  in  the  cup 
on  the  stalk  of  the  thistle,  and  for  a  minute  or  so  the 
two  jointly  admired  the  strangely  beautified  dolly. 
The  boy  tired  first  of  this  and  brought  dolly  down  with 
a  well-aimed  pebble.  But  in  that  way  dolly's  finery 
got  disordered,  and  the  little  girl  undressed  it  quickly 
and  set  to  anew  to  decorate  her  pet.  But  just  when 
the  doll  had  been  disrobed  and  only  wore  the  poppy 
flower  on  her  head,  the  boy  grasped  the  doll,  and  threw 
it  high  into  the  air.  The  girl,  though,  with  loud 
plaints  jumped  to  catch  it,  and  the  boy  again  caught 
it  first  and  tossed  it  again  and  again,  the  little  girl  all 
the  while  vainly  attempting  to  recover  it.  Quite 
a  while  this  wild  game  lasted,  but  in  the  violent  hands 
of  the  boy  the  flying  doll  now  came  to  grief,  and 
sustained  a  small  fracture  near  the  knee  of  her  sole 
remaining  limb.  And  from  a  small  aperture  some 
sawdust  and  bran  began  to  escape.  Hardly  had  he 
perceived  that  when  he  became  quiet  as  a  mouse, 
with  open  lips  endeavoring  eagerly  to  enlarge  the 
little  hole  with  his  nails,  in  order  to  investigate  the 
inside  and  find  out  whence  the  scattered  bran  came. 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    201 

The  poor  little  girl,  rendered  suspicious  by  the  boy's 
sudden  silence,  now  squeezed  up  and  noticed  with 
terror  his  efforts. 

"Just  look!"  shouted  the  boy  and  swung  the  doll's 
leg  right  before  his  playmate's  nose,  so  that  the  bran 
spurted  into  her  face.  When  she  tried  to  recover 
her  doll,  and  pleaded  and  shrieked,  he  sprang  away 
with  his  prey,  and  did  not  desist  before  the  whole  leg 
had  been  emptied  of  its  filling  and  hung,  a  mere  hollow 
shell,  from  his  hand.  Then,  to  crown  his  misdeeds, 
he  actually  threw  the  remains  of  the  doll  away,  and 
behaved  in  a  rude  and  grossly  indifferent  manner 
when  the  little  girl  gathered  up  her  treasure  and  put 
it  weeping  in  her  apron. 

But  she  took  it  out  after  a  while  and  gazed  with 
tears  at  what  was  left.  When  she  fathomed  the  full 
extent  of  the  damage,  she  resumed  weeping,  and 
it  was  particularly  the  ruined  leg  that  grieved  her; 
indeed  it  hung  just  as  limp  and  thin  as  the  tail  of 
a  salamander.  'When  she  wept  aloud  for  sorrow  the 
sinner  evinced  evidently  some  qualms  of  conscience, 
and  he  stood  stock-still,  his  features  suffused  with 
anxiety  and  repentance.  When  she  became  aware 
of  this  state  of  the  case,  she  stopped  crying  and  struck 
him  several  times  with  her  doll,  and  he  pretended  that 
she  hurt  him  and  exclaimed  in  a  natural  manner: 
"Outch!"  So  naturally  indeed  did  he  do  so  that  she 
was  satisfied  and  now  engaged  with  him  in  the  great 
sport  of  further  and  complete  destruction.     Together 


202  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

they  bored  hole  upon  hole  into  the  martyred  body, 
and  let  the  bran  out  everywhere.  This  bran  they 
collected  with  great  pains,  deposited  it  on  a  big  flat 
stone,  and  stirred  it  over  and  over  to  ascertain  its 
mysterious  properties.  ^ 

The  sole  part  of  the/ciqll  still  in  its  former  state  was 
the  head,  and  thus  of  course  it  attracted  the  special 
attention  of  the  two  children.  With  great  care  they 
separated  it  from  the  trunk,  and  peered  in  amaze- 
ment at  its  hollow  interior.  Seeing  this  great  hollow 
the  thought  occurred  to  them  to  fill  it  up  with  the 
loose  bran.  With  their  tiny  baby  fingers  they  stuffed 
and  stuffed  by  turns  the  bran  into  the  empty  space, 
and  for  the  first  time  in  its  existence  this  head  was 
filled  with  something.  The  boy,  however,  evidently 
deemed  the  task  incomplete;  probably  it  required 
some  life,  something  moving,  to  satisfy  him.  So  he 
flj,  and  while  he  held  it  tight  he 
instructed  the  little  girl  to  let  out  the  bran  once 
more.  Then  he  placed  the  fly  into  the  hollow  head, 
and  stopped  up  the  exit  with  a  small  bunch  of  grass. 
The  two  children  held  the  head  to  their  ears,  and  then 
put  it  solemnly  upon  a  great  rock.  Since  the  head 
was  still  covered  with  the  scarlet  poppy,  this  receptacle 
of  sound  now  closely  resembled  a  soothsaying  oracle, 
and  the  two  Hstened  with  great  respect  to  queer  noises 
it  emitted,  in  deep  silence  as  if  fairy  tales  were  being 
told,  holding  each  other  close  meanwhile.  But  every 
prophet  awakens  not  only  respect  but  also  terror  and 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    203 

ingratitude.  The  odd  noises  inside  the  hollow  head 
aroused  the  human  cruelty  of  the  children,  and  jointly 
they  resolved  to  bury  it.  They  dug  a  shallow  grave, 
and  placed  the  head  in  it,  without  first  obtaining  the 
views  of  the  imprisoned  fly  on  it.  Tjien  th£y,£rect€4. 
over  the  grave  a  monument  of  stone,  But  awe  seized 
them  at  this  instance,  since  they  had  buried  something 
living  and  conscious,  and  they  went  away  from  the 
scene  of  this  pagan  sacrifice.  In  a  spot  wholly  over- 
grown with  green  herbs  the  little  girl  lay  down  on  her 
back,  being  tired,  and  began  singing,  over  and  over 
again,  a  few  simple  words  in  a  monotonous  voice, 
and  the  little  boy  sat  near  and  joined  singing,  and  he, 
too,  was  so  tired  as  almost  to  fall  asleep.  The  sun 
shone  right  into  the  open  mouth  of  the  singing  girl, 
illuminating  her  white  little  teeth,  and  rendered  her 
scarlet  lips  semi-transparent.  The  boy  saw  these 
white  teeth,  and  he  held  her  head  and  curiously  in- 
vestigating them  he  said:  "Guess  how  many  teeth  you 
have."  The  little  girl  reflected  for  a  moment,  and 
then  she  said  at  random:  "A  hundred!"  "No,"  said 
the  boy,  "two  and  thirty."  But  he  added:  "Wait, 
I  will  count  them  I" 

And  he  started  to  count  them,  and  counted  over  and 
over,  and  it  was  at  no  time  thirty-two,  and  so  he 
resumed  his  count.  The  girl  kept  patient  for  a  long 
time,  but  at  last  she  got  up  and  said:  "Now  I  will 
count  yours."  And  the  boy  lay  down  amongst  the 
herbs,  the  little  one  above  him,  and  she  embraced 


204  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

his  head,  he  opened  wide  his  mouth,  and  she  began 
to  count:  One,  two,  seven,  five,  two,  one;  for  the 
little  thing  knew  not  yet  how  to  count.  The  boy 
corrected  her  and  instructed  her  how  to  go  about  it, 
and  thus  she  also  started  again  and  again,  and  curiously 
enough  it  was  precisely  this  little  game  that  pleased 
them  best  of  all  that  day.  But  at  last  the  little  girl 
sank  down  on  the  soft  couch  of  herbs,  and  the  two 
children  fell  asleep  in  the  full  glare  of  the  noon  sun. 

Meanwhile  the  fathers  had  finished  their  job  of 
plowing  and  had  changed  the  stubble  field  into  a 
brown  plain,  strongly  scenting  the  earth.  When  at 
the  end  of  the  last  furrow  the  helper  of  one  of  the  two 
wanted  to  stop,  his  master  shouted:  "Why  do  you 
stop?  Turn  up  another  furrow  1"  "But  we're  done,'' 
said  the  helper.  "Shut  your  mouth,  and  do  what  I 
tell  you,"  replied  the  other.  And  they  did  turn  once 
more  and  tore  a  big  furrow  right  into  the  middle,  the 
ownerless,  field,  so  that  weeds  and  stones  flew  about. 
But  the  peasant  took  no  time  to  remove  these.  Prob- 
ably he  considered  that  there  was  ample  time  for  that 
some  other  day.  He  was  satisfied  to  do  the  thing 
for  the  nonce  only  in  its  main  feature.  Thus  he 
went  up  the  height  softly,  and  when  up  on  top  and  the 
delicious  play  of  the  wind  now  turned  once  more  the  tip 
of  his  white  cap  backwards,  on  the  other  side  of  the 
fallow  field  the  second  peasant  was  just  plowing  a 
similar  furrow,  the  wind  having  also  reversed  the  tip  of 
his  cap,  and  cut  also  a  goodly  furrow  pff  from  the  same 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    205 

fallow  field.  Each  of  them  saw,  of  course,  what  the 
other  did,  but  neither  seemed  to  do  so,  and  thus  they 
once  more  strode  away  one  from  the  other,  each  falling 
star  finally  disappearing  below  the  curve  of  the  ground. 
Thus  the  woof  of  Fate  spins  its  net  around  us,  "and 
what  he  weaves  no  weaver  knows." 

One  harvest  after  another  went  by  and  the  two 
children  grew  steadily  taller  and  handsomer,  and  the  h 
ownerless  fields  as  steadily  smaller  between  the  two 
neighbors.  With  every  new  plowing  the  section 
between  lost  hither  and  thither  one  furrow,  without 
there  being  a  word  said  about  it,  and  without  a  human 
eye  apparently  noting  the  misdeed.  The  ^fohefe  and 
rocks  became  more  and  more  compact  and  formed 
already  a  perfect  and  continuous  ridge  the  whole 
length  of  the  field,  and  the  shrubs  and  weeds  on  it 
had  already  attained  such  an  altitude  that  the  two 
chSSren,  although  they,  too,  had  grown,  could  no 
longer  see  each  other  across  them. 

They  no  longer  went  to  the  field  together,  since 
ten-year-old  Salomon,  or  Sali,  as  he  was  mostly  called, 
now  kept  with  the  bigger  boys  or  the  men,  and  dusky 
Vreni,^  though  a  fiery  little  thing,  had  already  to 
place  herself  under  the  supervision  of  those  of  her 
sex,  for  fear  of  being  laughed  at  as  a  tomboy.  In 
spite  of  all  that  they  improved  the  occasion  of  the 
harvest,  when  everybody  was  out  in  the  fields,  to 
climb  once  on  top  of  the  huge  stony  ridge,  or  breast- 
*Vreni,  Vreneli,  Vreeli;  Swiss  diminutive  forms  of  Veronica. 


2o6  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

works,  which  ordinarily  divided  them,  and  to  wage  a 
toy  war,  pushing  each  other  down  from  it,  as  the  cul- 
mination of  the  battle.  Even  though  they  had  no 
longer  anything  more  to  do  with  each  other,  this 
annual  ceremony  was  maintained  by  them  all  the 
more  carefully  since  the  land  of  their  fathers  did  not 
meet  anywhere  else. 

However,  now  the  fallow  field  was  to  be  sold,  after 
all,  and  the  sum  realized  provisionally  kept  by  the 
authorities.  The  day  came  at  last,  and  the  public 
sale  took  place  on  the  spot  itself.  But  beside  Manz 
and  Marti  there  were  present  only  a  few  curious  ones, 
since  nobody  but  they  felt  like  buying  the  odd  piece 
of  ground  and  cultivating  it  between  the  property 
of  the  two  peasants.  For  although  these  two  belonged 
among  the  best  farmers  of  the  village,  and  had  done 
nothing  but  what  two-thirds  of  the  others  would  also 
have  done  under  like  circumstances,  still  now  they 
were  looked  at  askance  because  of  it,  and  nobody 
wanted  to  be  squeezed  in  between  them  in  the  dimin- 
ished and  orphaned  field.  For  most  men  are  so 
made  as  to  be  quite  ready  to  commit  a  wrong  which  is 
more  or  less  in  vogue,  especially  if  the  circumstances 
of  the  case  facihtate  the  wrong.  But  as  soon  as  the 
wrong  has  been  perpetrated  by  some  one  else,  they  are 
glad  that  it  was  not  they  who  had  been  exposed  to 
the  temptation,  and  then  they  regard  the  guilty  one 
almost  as  a  warning  example  in  regard  to  their  own 
failings,  and  treat  him  with  a  delicate  aversion  as  a 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    207 

sort  of  lightning  rod  of  evil  itself,  as  one  marked 
by  the  gods  themselves,  while  all  the  while  their  mouths 
are  watering  for  the  advantages  thus  accrued  to  him 
by  means  of  his  sin. 

Manz  and  Marti  were,  therefore,  the  only  ones  who 
seriously  bid  on  the  ownerless  land,  and  after  a  rather 
spirited  contest,  during  which  the  price  was  driven 
up  higher  than  had  been  supposed,  it  was  Manz 
to  whom  it  was  awarded.  The  officials  and  the 
lookers-on  soon  drifted  away,  and  the  two  neighbors 
who  had  been  busy  on  their  fields  after  the  sale,  met 
again,  and  Marti  said:  "I  suppose  you  will  now  put 
your  land,  the  old  and  the  new,  together,  halve  it, 
and  work  it  in  that  way?  That,  at  least,  is  what 
I  should  have  done  if  I  had  got  the  land." 

"That  indeed  is  what  I  mean  to  do,''  answered 
Manz,  "for  as  one  single  field  it  would  not  be  easy 
to  manage.  But  there  is  anothei:  thing  I  want  to  say. 
I  noticed  the  other  day  that  you  drove  into  the  lower 
end  of  this  field  that  has  now  become  mine,  and  that 
you  cut  off  quite  a  good-sized  triangle.  It  may  be 
you  thought  at  the  time  that  you  yourself  would  soon 
own  the  whole  of  it  and  that  then  it  would  make  no 
difference  anyway.  But  since  now  it  belongs  to  me,/ 
you  will  admit  that  I  cannot  and  will  not  permit 
such  a  curtailment  of  my  property  rights,  and  you  will 
not  take  it  amiss  if  I  again  straighten  out  the  right 
lines.  Of  course  you  will  not.  There  need  be  no 
hard  feelings  on  that  score." 


2o8  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

Marti,  however,  replied  just  as  coolly:  "Neither 
do-  I  look  for  any  trouble.  For  my  opinion  is  you 
have  purchased  the  field  just  as  it  is.  We  both  ex- 
amined it  before  the  sale,  and  of  course  it  has  not 
changed  within  an  hour  or  so." 

"Nonsense,"  said  Manz,  "what  was  done  formerly, 
under  different  conditions,  we  will  not  go  into.  But 
too  much  is  too  much,  and  everything  has  its  limit, 
and  must  be  adjusted  according  to  reason  in  the  end. 
These  three  fields  have  from  of  old  been  lying  one  next 
to  the  other  just  as  though  marked  with  the  measuring 
tape.  You  may  think  it  funny  to  put  in  such  an 
unjustifiable  objection  or  claim.  We  both  of  us  would 
get  a  new  nickname  if  I  let  you  keep  that  crooked  end 
of  it  without  rhyme  or  reason.  It  must  come  back 
where  it  by  right  belongs." 

But  Marti  only  laughed  and  said:  "All  at  once  so 
afraid  of  what  people  may  think?  But  then,  it^s 
easily  arranged.  I  have  no  objection  at  all  to  such 
a  crooked-shaped  bit  of  land.  If  you  don't  like  it, 
all  right,  we  can  straighten  it  out.  But  not  on  my 
side,  I  swear." 

"Don't  talk  so  strange,"  replied  Manz  with  some 
heat.  "Of  course  it  will  be  straightened  out,  and  that 
on  your  side.  You  can  bet  your  bottom  dollar  on 
that." 

"Well,  we'll  see  about  that,"  was  Marti's  parting 
remark,  and  the  two  men  separated  without  even 
looking  at  each  other.     On  the  contrary,  they  gazed 


ROMEO  AND   JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    209 

steadfastly  in  different  directions,  as  if  something  of 
enormous  interest  were  floating  in  the  air  which  it  was 
absolutely  necessary  to  keep  an  eye  on. 

On  the  next  day  already  Manz  sent  his  hired  boy, 
also  a  wench  working  for  daily  wage,  and  his  own  boy 
Sali  out  to  the  new  field,  to  begin  removing  the  weeds 
and  wild  growths,  and  to  pile  them  up  at  certain  places, 
so  as  to  make  the  loading  up  and  carting  away  of  the 
crop  of  stones  all  the  easier.  This  noted  a  change 
in  his  character,  this  sending  the  little  boy,  scarcely 
eleven,  whom  he  had  never  before  driven  to  hard 
work  such  as  weeding,  out  to  field  labor,  and  this 
against  the  will  of  the  mother.  It  seemed  indeed, 
since  he  defended  his  order  with  solemn  and  high- 
sounding  words,  as  if  he  wanted  to  daze  his  own  better 
conscience.  At  any  rate,  the  slight  wrong  thus  done 
to  his  own  flesh  and  blood  in  insisting  on  onerous  and 
unfit  labor,  was  but  one  of  the  consequences  growing 
out  of  the  original  wrong  done  by  him  for  years  in 
regard  to  the  field  itself.^  One  bY_Qne  more  wrong, 
more  evil  unfolded  itself.  The  three  meanwhile 
weeded  away  industriously  on  the  long  strip  of  ground, 
and  hacked  away  at  the  queer  plants  that  had  been 
flourishing  on  the  soil  for  so  many  years.  And  to  the 
young  people  doing  this  hard  work,  albeit  it  taxed 
and  tried  their  strength  greatly,  it  really  was  something 
of  an  amusement,  since  it  was  no  carefully  graduated 
and  scaled  task,  but  rather  a  wild  job  of  destruction. 
After  piling  all  this  vegetable  refuse  up  in  heaps  and 


2IO  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

letting  the  sun  dry  it,  it  was  set  afire  with  great  jubi- 
lation and  noise,  and  when  the  murky  flames  shot  up 
and  broad  swaths  of  smoke  waved  irregularly,  the 
young  people  jumped  and  danced  about  like  a  band  of 
wild  Indians. 

But  this  was  the  last  festival  on  the  ominous  new 
field,  and  little  Vreni,  Marti's  young  daughter,  also 
crept  out  and  joined  the  revels.  The  unusual  occa- 
sion and  the  spirit  of  rampant  gaiety  easily  brought 
it  about  that  the  two  playmates  of  yore  once  more 
came  in  contact  and  were  happy  and  jolly  at  their 
bonfire.  Other  children,  too,  gathered,  until  there 
was  quite  a  crowd  of  youthful,  excited  merrymakers 
assembled.  But  always  it  happened  that,  as  soon 
as  the  two  became  separated  in  the  throng,  Vreni 
would  rejoin  Sali,  or  Sali  Vreni.  When  it  was  she 
it  was  a  treat  to  watch  her  face  when  she  slipped  her 
little  hand  in  that  of  the  boy,  her  animated  features 
and  her  glowing  eyes  fairly  brimming  with  pleasure. 
To  both  of  them  it  seemed  as  though  this  glorious 
day  could  never  end.'  Old  Manz,  though,  came  out 
toward  evening,  to  see  what  had  been  accomplished, 
and  despite  the  fact  that  their  labor  had  been  done 
well  and  as  directed,  he  scolded  at  the  childish  jolli- 
fication and  drove  the  young  people  off  his  ground. 
Almost  at  the  same  time  Marti  visited  his  own  section 
adjoining,  and  noticing  his  little  daughter  from  afar, 
he  whistled  to  her  shrill  and  peremptory,  and  when 
she  obeyed  the  summons  in  frightened  haste  he  struck 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    211 

her  harshly  in  the  face  without  giving  any  reason. 
So  that  both  little  ones  went  home  weeping  and  sad; 
yet  they  were  both  still  so  much  children  that  they 
scarcely  knew  at  this  time  why  they  were  so  sad  or 
knew  before  why  they  felt  so  happy.  As  for  the  rude^, 
ness  of  their  fathers  they  did  not  understand  the 
underlying  motive  of  it,  and  it  did  not  touch  their 
.hearts. 

■^  During  the  next  days  the  labor  became  harder  and 
more  strenuous,  and  some  men  had  to  be  hired  for  it. 
For  the  task  was  this  time  to  load  and  clean  off  the 
huge  crop  of  stones  along  the  entire  length  of  the 
field. 

There  seemed  to  be  no  end  to  this  work,  and  one 
would  have  said  that  all  the  stones  in  the  world  had 
been  collected  there.  But  Manz  did  not  have  the 
stones  carted  off  entirely  from  the  field,  but  every  ^ 
load  was  taken  to  the  triangular  piece  of  ground  in  / 
dispute,  where  it  was  dumped.  It  was  dumped  on.^ 
the  neatly  plowed  soil  that  Marti  had  toiled  over. 
Manz  had  previously  drawn  a  straight  line  as  boundary, 
and  now  he  loaded  this  spot  down  with  all  these  thou- 
sands upon  thousands  of  pebbles,  rocks  and  bowlders 
which  he  and  Marti  had  for  whole  decades  thrown 
upon  ownerless  soil.  The  heap  grew,  and  grew  for 
days  and  weeks,  until  there  was  a  mighty  pyramid 
of  stone  which,  as  Manz  felt  convinced,  his  adversary 
would  surely  be  loath  to  trouble  with.  Marti,  in 
fact,    had   expected   nothing   of   the   kind.    He   had 


212  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

rather  thought  that  Manz  would  go  to  work  with 
his  plow,  as  he  used  to  do,  and  had  therefore  waited 
to  see  him  appear  in  that  part.  And  Marti  did  not 
hear  of  the  rocky  monument  until  almost  completed. 
When  he  ran  out  in  the  full  blast  of  his  anger,  and  saw 
it  all,  he  hastened  home  and  fetched  the  village  magis- 
trate in  order  to  protest  against  the  accumulation  of 
stones  on  "his"  ground,  and  to  have  the  small  bit  of 
ground  officially  declared  as  in  litigation. 

From  that  sinister  day  on  the  two  peasants  sued  and 
countersued  each  other  in  court,  and  neither  desisted 
until  both  were  completely  ruined. 

The  thinking  of  these  two  ordinarily  shrewd  and 
fair  men  became  fundamentally  wrong  and  fallacious. 
They  were  unable  to  view  anything  henceforth  as 
unrelated  with  their  quarrel.  Their  arguments  fell 
short  of  the  mark  in  everything.  The  most  narrow 
sense  of  legality,  of  what  was  permitted  and  what 
not,  filled  the  head  of  each  of  them,  and  neither  was 
able  to  understand  how  the  other  could  seize  so  entirely 
without  reason  or  right  this  bit  of  soil,  in  itself  so 
insignificant.  In  the  case  of  Manz  there  was  added 
a  wonderful  sense  for  symmetry  and  parallel  lines,  and 
he  felt  really  and  truly  shortened  in  his  rights  by 
Martins  insistence  on  retaining  hold  of  a  fragment  of 
property  laid  out  on  different  geometrical  lines.  But 
both  tallied  in  their  conceptions  in  this  that  the  other 
must  think  him  a  veritable  fool  to  try  and  get  the 
better  of  him  in  this  particular  manner,  in  this  impu- 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    213 

dent  and  unparalleled  manner,  since  to  make  such  an 
attempt  at  all  was  perhaps  thinkable  in  the  case  of 
a  mere  nobody,  of  a  man  without  reputation  and 
substance,  but  surely  not  in  the  case  of  an  upstanding, 
energetic  and  able  man,  of  one  who  was  both  willing 
and  able  to  take  care  of  his  interests.  And  it  was  this 
consideration  above  all  that  rankled  and  festered  in 
the  heart  of  each  of  the  two  once  so  friendly  neighbors. 
Each  felt  himself  hurt  in  his  quaint  sense  of  honor, 
and  let  himself  go  headlong  in  the  rush  of  passion 
and  of  combativeness,  without  even  attempting  at 
any  time  to  stop  the  resultant  moral  and  material 
decay  and  ruin.  Their  two  lives  henceforth  resembled 
the  torture  of  two  lost  souls  who,  upon  a  narrow  board, 
carried  along  a  dark  and  fearsome  river,  yet  deal 
tremendous  blows  at  the  air,  seize  upon  each  other  and 
destroy  each  other  finally,  all  in  the  false  belief  of 
having  seized  and  trying  to  destroy  their  evil  fate 
itself. 

As  their  whole  matter  in  dispute  was  in  itself  and 
on  both  sides  not  clean  or  lucid,  they  soon  got  into  the 
hands  of  all  sorts  of  swindlers  and  cutthroats,  of 
pettifoggers  and  evil  counselors,  men  who  filled  then- 
imagination  with  glittering  bubbles,  containing  no 
substance  whatever.  And  especially  it  was  the  specu- 
lators and  dishonest  agents  of  Seldwyla  who  found 
this  case  one  after  their  own  heart,  and  soon  each  of 
the  two  litigants  had  a  whole  train  of  advisers,  go- 
betweens  and  spies  around  him,  fellows  who  in  all  sorts 


214  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

of  crooked  ways  knew  how  to  draw  cash  money  out 
of  them.  For  the  quarrel  for  that  tiny  fragment  of 
soil  with  the  stone  pyramid  on  top  on  which  already 
a  perfect  forest  of  weeds,  thistles  and  nettles  had  grown 
anew,  was  only  the  first  stage  in  a  labyrinth  of  errors 
that  little  by  httle  changed  the  whole  character  and 
method  of  living  for  the  two.  It  was  singular,  too, 
how  in  the  case  of  two  men  of  about  fifty  there  could 
shoot  up  and  become  fixed  an  entire  crop  of  new 
habits  and  morals,  principles  and  hopes,  all  of  a  kind 
which  were  foreign  to  their  former  natures,  how  men 
who  all  their  lives  had  been  noted  for  their  hard 
common-sense  could  become  day-dreamers  and  gullible 
oafs. 

And  the  more  money  they  lost  by  all  this  the  more 
they  longed  to  acquire  more,  and  the  less  they  pos- 
sessed the  more  persistently  they  endeavored  to  be- 
come rich  and  to  shine  before  their  fellows.  Thus 
they  easily  allowed  themselves  to  be  hoodwinked  by 
the  clumsiest  tricks,  and  year  after  year  they  would 
play  in  all  the  foreign  lotteries  of  which  Seldwyla 
agents  were  praising  to  them  the  splendid  chances. 
But  never  so  much  as  a  dollar  came  their  way  in  prizes. 
On  the  other  hand,  they  forever  heard  of  the  big 
winnings  in  these  lotteries  made  by  others;  they  also 
were  told  that  it  had  hung  just  by  a  hair  that  they 
would  have  done  as  well,  and  thus  they  were  constantly 
bled  by  these  leeches  of  their  scantier  and  scantier 
means. 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    215 

Now  and  then  the  rascally  Seldwylians  played  a 
trick  on  the  two  deadly  enemies  which  for  its  peculiar 
raciness  was  specially  relished  by  them,  the  people 
of  Seldwyla,  that  is.  They  would  sell  the  two  peasants 
sections  of  the  same  lottery  tickets,  so  that  Manz 
as  well  as  Marti  would  build  their  hopes  of  a  rich 
strike  on  precisely  the  same  fallacious  foundation, 
and  also  in  the  end  would  feel  the  same  despondency 
from  the  same  source.  Half  their  time  the  two  now 
spent  in  town,  and  there  each  had  his  headquarters 
in  a  miserable  tavern.  There  they  would  indulge 
in  foolish  bragging  and  bluster,  would  drink  too  much 
and  play  the  Lord  Bountiful  to  loafers  that  would 
flatter  the  simpletons  to  the  top  of  their  bent,  and  all 
the  while  the  dark  doubt  would  assail  them  that  they 
who  in  order  not  to  be  reckoned  dunces  had  gone  to 
law  about  a  trifling  object,  had  now  really  become 
just  that  and  furthermore,  were  so  reckoned  by  general 
consent. 

The  other  half  of  the  time  they  spent  at  home,, 
morose  and  incapable  of  steady  work  or  sober  re- 
flection. Habitually  neglecting  their  farm  labor,  at 
times  they  tried  to  make  up  for  that  by  undue  haste, 
overworking  their  help  and  thus  soon  unable  to  retain 
any  respectable  men  in  their  employ. 

Thus  things  went  from  bad  to  worse  little  by  little, 
and  within  less  than  ten  years  both  of  them  were 
overburdened  with  debts,  and  stood  like  storks  with 
one  leg  upon  their  farms,  so  that  the  slightest  change 


2i6  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

might  blow  them  over.  But  no  matter  how  else  they 
fared,  the  hatred  between  them  grew  more  intense 
every  day,  since  each  looked  upon  the  other  as  the 
cause  of  his  misfortune,  as  his  archenemy,  as  his  foe 
without  rhyme  or  reason,  as  the  one  being  in  the  world 
whom  the  devil  purposely  had  invented  to  ruin  him. 
They  spat  out  before  each  other  when  they  saw  the 
adversary  approaching  from  afar.  Nobody  belong- 
ing to  them  was  permitted  to  speak  to  wife,  child  or 
servants  of  the  other,  on  pain  of  instant  brutal  punish- 
ment. Their  wives  behaved  differently  under  these 
circumstances.  Marti's  wife,  who  came  of  good 
family  and  was  of  a  fine  disposition,  did  not  long 
survive  the  rapid  downfall  of  her  house  and  family, 
sorrowed  silently  and  died  before  her  little  daughter 
was  fourteen.  The  wife  of  Manz,  on  the  other  hand, 
altered  her  whole  character.  Only  for  the  worse, 
of  course.  And  to  do  that  all  she  needed  to  do  was 
to  aggravate  some  of  her  natural  defects,  let  them 
go  on,  so  to  speak,  without  bridling  them  at  all.  Her 
passion  for  tidbits  and  sweets  became  boundless; 
her  love  of  gossip  deteriorated  into  a  veritable  craze, 
and  she  soon  became  unable  to  tell  the  truth  about 
anything  or  anybody.  She  habitually  spoke  the  very 
contrary  of  what  was  in  her  thoughts,  cheated  and 
deceived  her  own  husband,  and  found  keen  pleasure 
in  getting  everybody  by  the  ears.  Her  original  frank- 
ness and  her  harmless  delight  in  satisfying  her  feminine 
curiosity  turned  into  evil  intrigue  and  the  inclination 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    217 

to  make  mischief  between  neighbors  and  friends. 
Instead  of  suffering  patiently  under  the  rudeness  and 
changed  habits  of  her  husband,  she  fooled  him  and 
laughed  behind  his  back  in  doing  so.  No  matter 
if  he  now  and  then  behaved  with  cruelty  to  her  and 
his  household,  she  did  not  care.  She  denied  herself 
nothing,  became  more  luxurious  in  her  tastes  as  his 
money  affairs  grew  steadily  more  involved,  and  fat- 
tened on  the  very  misfortunes  that  were  rapidly 
leading  to  complete  ruin. 

That  with  all  that  the  two  children  fared  any  better 
was  scarcely  to  be  expected.  While  still  mere  human 
buds  and  incapable  of  meeting  the  harsh  fate  slowly 
preparing  for  them,  they  were  done  out  of  their  youth 
and  out  of  the  hopes  and  advantages  incident  to  their 
tender  years.  Vreni  indeed  was  worse  off  in  this 
respect  than  Sali,  the  boy,  since  her  mother  was  dead 
and  she  was  exposed  in  a  wasted  home  to  the  tyranny 
of  a  father  whose  violent  instincts  found  no  check 
whatever.  When  sixteen  Vreni  had  developed  into  a 
slender  and  charming  young  girl.  Her  hair  of  dark- 
brown  naturally  curled  down  to  her  flashing  eyes; 
her  swiftly  coursing  blood  seemed  to  shimmer  through 
the  delicate  oval  of  her  dusky  cheeks,  and  the  scarlet 
of  her  dainty  lips  made  a  strikingly  vivid  contrast, 
so  that  everybody  looked  twice  when  she  passed. 
And  despite  her  sad  bringing-up,  an  ardent  love  of 
life  and  an  inextinguishable  cheerfulness  were  trem- 
bling in  every  fibre  of  Vreni 's  being.     Laughing  and 


2i8  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

smiling  at  the  least  encouragement  she  forgot  her 
troubles  easily,  and  was  always  ready  for  a  frolic  and 
a  romp  if  domestic  weather  permitted  at  all,  that  is, 
if  her  father  did  not  hinder  and  torture  her  too  cruelly. 
However,  with  all  her  lightheartedness  and  her  buoyant 
temperament,  the  deepening  shadows  over  the  house 
inevitably  enshrouded  her  all  too  often.  She  had  to 
bear  the  brunt  of  her  father's  soured  disposition,  and 
she  had  hardly  any  help  in  trying  to  keep  house  for 
him  after  a  fashion.  On  her  young  shoulders  mainly 
rested  the  embarrassments  of  a  home  constantly 
threatened  by  importunate  creditors  and  wild  boon 
companions  of  her  dissolute  father.  And  not  alone 
that.  With  the  natural  taste  of  her  sex  for  a  neat 
and  clean  appearance  her  father  refused  her  nearly 
every  means  to  gratify  it.  Thus  she  had  great  trouble 
to  ornament  her  pretty  person  the  way  it  deserved. 
But  somehow  she  managed  to  do  it,  to  possess  always 
a  becoming  holiday  attire,  including  even  a  couple  of 
vividly  colored  kerchiefs  that  set  off  marvelously  her 
darksome  beauty.  Full  of  youthful  animation  and 
gaiety  she  found  it  hard  to  mostly  have  to  renounce 
all  the  social  pleasures  of  her  years;  but  at  least  this 
prevented  her  from  falling  into  the  opposite  extreme. 
Besides,  young  as  she  was,  she  had  witnessed  the 
declining  days  and  the  death  of  her  mother,  and  had 
been  deeply  impressed  by  it,  so  that  this  had  acted 
as  another  restraint  on  her  joyous  disposition.  It  was 
almost  a  pathetic  sight  to  observe  how  notwithstand- 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    219 

ing  all  these  serious  obstacles  pretty  Vreni  instantly 
would  respond  to  the  calls  of  joy  if  the  occasion  was 
at  all  favorable,  as  a  flower  after  drooping  in  a  heavy 
rainstorm  will  raise  its  head  at  the  first  rays  of  the 
reappearing  sun. 

Sali  was  not  faring  quite  so  ill.  He  was  a  good- 
looking  and  vigorous  young  fellow  who  knew  how  to 
take  care  of  himself  and  whose  size  and  physical 
strength  alone  would  have  forbidden  harsh  bodily 
mistreatment.  He  saw,  of  course,  how  his  parents 
were  sliding  down-hill  more  and  more,  and  he  seemed 
to  remember  a  time  when  things  had  been  otherwise. 
He  even  carried  in  his  memory  the  picture  of  his  father 
as  that  of  an  upstanding,  determined,  serious  and 
energetic  peasant,  while  now  he  saw  before  him  all 
the  while  a  man  who  was  a  gray-headed  dolt,  a  quar- 
relsome fool,  who  with  all  his  fits  of  impotent  rage 
and  all  his  brag  and  bluster  was  every  hour  more 
and  more  crawling  backwards  like  a  crawfish.  But 
when  these  things  displeased  him  and  filled  him  with 
shame  and  sorrow,  although  he  could  not  very  well 
understand  how  it  all  had  come  about,  the  influence 
of  his  mother  came  to  deaden  this  feeling  and  to  fill 
him  with  an  unjustified  hope  of  improvement.  She 
would  flatter  her  son  in  the  same  extravagant  and 
wholly  unreasonable  manner  which  had  become  her 
second  nature  in  dealing  with  the  new  troubles  that 
were  gradually  overcoming  the  whole  family.  For  in 
order  to  lead  her  life  of  self-indulgence  the  more  easily 


220  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

and  to  have  one  critical  observer  the  less,  and  to  make 
her  son  her  partisan,  but  also  as  a  vent  for  her  love  of 
display,  she  contrived  to  let  her  son  have  everything 
he  had  a  desire  for.  She  saw  to  it  that  he  was  always 
dressed  with  care,  and  entirely  too  expensively  for  the 
means  of  the  family,  and  indulged  him  in  his  pleasures. 
He  on  his  part  accepted  all  that  without  much  thought 
or  gratitude,  since  he  noticed  at  the  same  time  how  his 
mother  was  juggling  with  and  tricking  his  father,  and 
how  she  was  continually  telling  untruths  and  vainly 
boasting.  And  while  thus  allowing  his  mother  to 
spoil  him  without  paying  much  attention  to  the 
process  itself,  no  great  harm  was  yet  done  in  his  case, 
since  he  had  so  far  not  been  much  tainted  by  the  vices 
and  sins  of  mother  or  father.  Indeed,  in  his  youthful 
pride  he  had  the  strong  wish  to  become,  if  possible, 
a  man  such  as  he  recalled  his  own  father  once  to  have 
been,  a  man  of  substance  and  of  rational  and  successful 
conduct  of  his  life.  Sali  was  really  very  much  as  his 
father  knew  himself  to  have  been  at  his  own  age, 
and  a  queer  remnant  of  respectability  urged  the 
father  to  treat  his  son  well.  In  honoring  him  he 
seemed  to  honor  his  old  self.  Confused  reminiscences 
at  such  times  drifted  through  his  beclouded  soul,  and 
they  afforded  him  a  species  of  subconscious  delight. 
But  although  in  this  manner  Sali  escaped  some  of  the 
natural  consequences  of  the  process  of  domestic 
decay  which  was  going  on  around  him,  he  was  not 
able  to  genuinely  enjoy  his  life  and  to  make  rational 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE  221 

plans  for  an  assured  future.  He  felt  well  enough  that 
he  was  resting  on  quicksand,  that  he  was  neither 
doing  anything  much  to  bring  himself  into  a  position 
of  independence  nor  to  look  for  any  secured  future; 
nor  was  he  learning  much  towards  that  end  in  the 
broken-down  household  and  on  the  neglected  farm  of 
his  father.  The  work  done  there  was  done  hap- 
hazard style,  and  no  systematic  and  orderly  effort  was 
made  to  get  things  done  in  season.  His  best  con- 
solation, therefore,  was  to  preserve  his  good  reputation, 
to  work  with  a  will  on  the  farm  when  he  could,  and  to 
turn  his  eyes  away  from  a  threatening  future. 

The  sole  orders  laid  upon  him  by  his  father  were'*^ 
to  avoid  any  sort  of  intercourse  with  all  that  bore 
the  name  of  Marti.  All  he  knew  about  the  matter 
personally  was  that  Marti  had  done  wrong  to  his 
father,  and  that  in  Marti's  house  precisely  the  same 
bitter  enmity  was  felt  towards  the  Manz  family. 
Of  the  details  involved  in  this  state  of  affairs,  of  the 
manner  in  which  the  old-time  good-neighborliness 
and  friendship  existing  for  so  many  years  between 
the  two  families  had  been  turned  into  hatred  and  scorn 
Sali  knew  nothing,  these  things  having  shaped  them- 
selves at  a  period  of  his  life  when  his  boyish  brain  had 
been  unable  to  grasp  their  true  meaning.  He  had 
perforce  been  content  with  the  verdict  of  his  father, 
obeying  the  latter's  prohibition  to  further  consort 
with  the  Marti  people  without  attempting  to  ascertain 
the  underlying  causes  of  the  quarrel.     So  far  he  had 


222  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

not  found  it  difficult  to  do  as  his  father  told  him, 
and  he  did  not  meddle  in  the  least  with  the  whole 
business.  He  made  no  effort  to  either  see  or  avoid 
Marti  and  his  daughter  Vreni,  and  while  he  assumed 
that  his  father  must  be  in  the  right  of  it,  he  was  no 
active  enemy  of  the  Martis.  Vreni,  on  her  part,  was 
differently  constituted  from  the  lad.  Having  to 
suffer  much  more  than  Sali  at  home  and  feeling  more 
deeply  than  he,  woman-fashion,  her  almost  total 
isolation,  she  was  not  so  ready  to  let  a  sentiment  of 
declared  enmity  enter  her  young  and  untried  heart. 
In  fact,  she  rather  believed  herself  scorned  and  de- 
spised by  the  much  better  clad  and  apparently  also 
much  more  fortunate  former  playmate.  It  was, 
therefore,  only  from  a  feeling  of  embarrassment  that 
she  hid  from  him,  and  whenever  he  came  near  enough 
to  perceive  her,  she  fled  from  him.  He  indeed  never 
troubled  to  glance  at  her.  So  it  happened  that  Sali 
had  not  seen  the  girl  near  enough  for  a  couple  of 
years  to  know  what  she  was  like.  He  had  no  notion 
f  that  she  was  now  almost  grown-up,  and  that  she  was 
distinctly  beautiful.  And  yet,  once  in  a  while  he  would 
remember  her  as  his  httle  playmate,  as  the  merry 
companion  of  his  carefree  boyhood,  and  when  at  his 
home  the  Martis  were  mentioned  he  instinctively 
wondered  what  had  become  of  her  and  how  she  would 
look  now.  He  certainly  did  not  hate  her.  In  his 
memory  she  lived  in  a  shadowy  sort  of  way  as  a  rather 
attractive  girl. 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    223 

^  1  It  was  his  father,  Manz,  now  who  first  had  to  go 
under.  He  was  no  longer  able  to  stave  off  his  creditors 
and  had  to  leave  farm  and  house  behind.  That  he, 
though  somewhat  of  better  means  originally  than  his 
neighbor  and  foe,  was  first  to  collapse  was  owing  to 
his  wife,  who  had  lived  in  quite  an  extravagant  style, 
and  then  he,  too,  had  a  son  who,  after  all,  cost  him 
something.  Marti,  as  we  know,  had  but  a  little 
daughter  who  was  scarcely  any  expense  to  him.  Manz 
did  not  know  what  else  to  do  but  to  follow  the  advice 
of  some  Seldwyla  patrons  and  move  to  town,  there 

2jto  turn  mine  host  of  an  inn  or  low  tavern.    It  is  always 

^  a  sad  sight  to  see  a  former  peasant  of  some  substance, 
a  man  who  has  been  leading  for  many  years  a  life  of 
unremitting  toil,  it  is  true,  but  also  one  of  independence 
and  usefulness,  after  growing  old  among  his  acres,  seek 
refuge  from  ill-fortune  in  town,  taking  the  small 
remnants  of  his  belongings  with  him  and  open  a  poor, 
shabby  resort,  in  order  to  play,  as  the  last  safety 
anchor,  the  amiable  and  seductive  host,  all  the  while 

'  vieeling  by  no  means  in  a  holiday  mood  himself.  When 
the  Manz  family  then  left  their  farm  to  take  this 
desperate  step,  it  was  first  apparent  how  poor  they 
had  already  grown.  For  all  the  household  goods  that 
were  loaded  on  a  cart  were  in  a  deplorable  state, 
defective  and  not  repaired  for  many  years.  Never- 
theless the  wife  put  on  her  best  finery,  when  seating 
herself  on  top  of  the  crazy  old  vehicle,  and  made  a 
face  of  such  pride  as  though  she  already  looked  down 


224  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

upon  her  neighbors  as  would  a  city  lady  of  taste  and 
refinement,  while  all  the  while  the  villagers  peeped 
from  behind  their  hedges  full  of  pity  at  the  sorry  show 
made  by  the  exodus.  For  Mother  Manz  had  settled 
it  in  her  foolish  noddle  to  turn  the  heads  of  all  Seld- 
wyla  by  her  fine  manners  and  her  wheedling  tongue, 
thinking  that  if  her  boorish  husband  did  not  under- 
stand how  to  handle  and  cajole  the  town  folks,  it 
was  vastly  different  with  herself  who  would  soon  show 
these  Seldwyla  people  what  an  alluring  hostess  she 
would  make  at  the  head  of  a  tavern  or  inn  doing  a 
rushing  business. 

Great  was  her  disenchantment,  however,  when  she 
actually  set  eyes  on  this  inn  vaunted  so  much  in  ad- 
vance by  her  addled  spirits.  For  it  was  located  in 
a  small  side-street  of  a  rather  disreputable  quarter 
of  Seldwyla,  and  the  inn  itself  was  one  in  which  the 
predecessor,  one  of  several  that  had  gone  the  same 
way,  had  just  been  forcibly  ousted  because  of  being 
unable  to  pay  his  debts.  His  Seldwyla  patrons  had, 
in  fact,  rented  this  mean  public  house  for  a  few  hun- 
dred dollars  a  year  to  Manz  in  consideration  of  the 
fact  that  the  latter  still  had  some  small  sums  out- 
standing in  town,  and  because  they  could  find  nobody 
else  to  take  the  place  at  a  venture.  They  also  sold 
him  a  few  barrels  of  inferior  wine  as  well  as  the  fixtures 
which  consisted  in  the  main  of  a  couple  of  dozen 
glasses  and  bottles,  and  of  some  rude  and  hacked 
pine  tables  and  benches  that  had  once  been  painted 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    225 

a  hue  of  deadly  scarlet  and  were  now  reduced  to  a 
dingy  brownish  tint.  Before  the  entrance  door  an 
iron  hoop  was  clattering  in  the  wind,  and  inside  the 
hoop  a  tin  hand  was  pouring  out  forever  claret  into  a 
small  shoppen  vessel.  Besides  all  these  luxuries  there 
was  a  sun-dried  bunch  of  datura  fastened  above  the 
door,  all  of  which  Manz  had  noted  down  in  his  lease. 

'/'Knowing  all  this  Manz  was  by  no  means  so  full  of 
hopes  and  smiling  humor  as  his  spouse,  but  on  the 
contrary  whipped  up  his  bony  old  horses,  lent  him  by 
the  new  owner  of  his  farm,  with  considerable  fore- 
boding. The  last  shabby  helper  he  had  had  on  his 
farm  had  left  him  several  weeks  before,  and  when 
he  left  the  village  on  this  his  present  errand  he  had 
not  failed  to  note  Marti  who,  full  of  grim  joy  and 
scorn,  had  busied  himself  with  some  trifling  task  along 
the  road  where  his  fallen  foe  had  to  pass.  Manz 
saw  it,  cursed  Marti,  and  held  him  to  be  the  sole 
cause  of  his  downfall.  But  Sali,  as  soon  as  the  cart 
was  fairly  on  the  way,  got  down,  speeded  up  his  steps 

f  and  reached  the  town  along  by-paths. 
'  '  "Well,  here  we  are,"  said  Manz,  when  the  cart  had 
reached  its  destination.  His  wife  was  crestfallen 
when  she  noticed  the  dreary  and  unpropitious  aspect 
of  the  place.  The  people  of  the  neighborhood  stepped 
in  front  of  their  housedoors  to  have  a  look  at  the  new 
innkeeper,  and  when  they  saw  the  rustic  appearance 
of  the  outfit  and  the  miserable  trappings,  they  put 
on  their   Seldwyla  smile  of   superiority.     WrathfuUy 


226  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

Mother  Manz  climbed  down  from  her  high  seat,  and 
tears  of  anger  were  in  her  eyes  as  she  quickly  fled  into 
the  house,  her  limber  tongue  for  once  forsaking  her. 
On  that  day  at  least  she  was  no  more  seen  below. 
For  she  herself  was  well  aware  of  the  sorry  show  made 
by  her,  and  all  the  more  as  the  tattered  condition  of 
her  furniture  could  not  be  concealed  from  prying  eyes 
when  the  various  articles  were  now  being  unloaded. 
Her  musty  and  torn  beds,  particularly,  she  felt  ashamed 
of.  Sali,  too,  shared  her  feelings,  but  he  was  obliged 
to  help  his  father  in  unloading,  and  the  two  made 
quite  a  stir  in  the  neighborhood  with  their  rustic 
manners  and  speech,  furnishing  the  curious  children 
with  food  for  laughter.  These  little  folks,  indeed, 
amused  themselves  abundantly  that  day  at  the  ex- 
pense of  the  "ragged  peasant  bankrupts."  Inside 
the  house,  though,  things  looked  still  more  desolate; 
the  place,  in  fact,  had  more  the  looks  of  a  robbers' 
roost  than  of  an  inn.  The  walls  were  of  badly  cal- 
somined  brick,  damp  with  moisture,  and  beside  the 
dark  and  poorly  furnished  guest  room  downstairs 
there  were  but  a  couple  of  bare  and  uninviting  bed- 
rooms, and  everywhere  their  predecessor  had  left 
behind  nothing  but  spider's  webs,  filth  and  dust. 

That  was  the  beginning  of  it,  and  thus  it  continued 
to  the  end.  During  the  first  few  weeks  indeed  there 
came,  especially  in  the  evenings,  a  number  of  people 
anxious  to  see,  out  of  sheer  curiosity,  **the  peasant 
landlord,''  hoping  there  would  be  "some  fun."    But 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    227 

out  of  the  landlord  himself  they  could  not  get  much 
of  that,  for  Manz  was  stiff,  unfriendly,  and  melancholy, 
and  did  not  in  the  least  know  how  to  treat  his  guests, 
nor  did  he  want  to  know.  Slowly  and  awkwardly 
he  would  pour  out  the  wine  demanded,  put  it  before 
the  customer  with  a  morose  air,  and  then  make  an 
unsuccessful  attempt  to  enter  into  some  sort  of  con- 
versation, but  brought  forth  only  some  stammered 
commonplaces,  whereupon  he  gave  it  up.  All  the 
more  desperately  did  his  wife  endeavor  to  entertain 
her  guests,  and  by  her  ludicrous  and  absurd  behavior 
really  managed,  for  a  few  days  at  least,  to  amuse 
people.  But  she  did  this  in  quite  a  different  way  from 
that  intended  by  her.  Mother  Manz  was  rather 
corpulent,  and  she  had  from  her  own  inventive  brain 
composed  a  costume  in  which  to  wait  on  her  guests 
and  in  which  she  believed  herself  to  be  simply  irre- 
sistible. With  a  stout  linen  skirt  she  wore  an  old 
waist  of  green  silk,  a  long  cotton  apron  and  a  ridiculous 
broad  collar  around  the  neck.  Out  of  her  hair,  no 
longer  abundant,  she  had  twisted  corkscrew  curls 
ornamenting  her  forehead,  and  in  the  back  she  had 
stuck  a  tall  comb  into  her  thin  braids.  Thus  made 
up  she  mincingly  danced  on  the  tips  of  her  toes  before 
the  particular  guest  to  be  entranced,  pointed  her 
mouth  in  a  laughable  manner,  which  she  thought 
was  "sweet,"  hopped  about  the  table  with  forced 
elasticity,  and  ser\dng  the  wine  or  the  salted  cheese 
she  would  exclaim  smilingly:    "Well,  well,  so  alone? 


228  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

Lively,  lively,  you  gentlemen!"  And  some  more  of 
such  nonsense  she  would  whisper  in  a  stilted  way,  for 
the  trouble  was  that  although  usually  she  could  talk 
glibly  about  almost  anything  with  her  cronies  from 
the  village,  she  felt  somewhat  embarrassed  with  these 
city  people,  not  being  acquainted  with  the  subjects 
of  conversation  they  liked  to  touch  on.  ?  The  Seld- 
wyla  people  of  the  roughest  type  who  had  dropped  in 
for  something  to  laugh  at,  put  their  hands  before 
their  mouths  to  prevent  bursting  out  in  her  face, 
nearly  suffocated  with  suppressed  merriment,  trod 
upon  each  other's  feet  under  the  table,  and  afterwards, 
in  relating  the  matter,  would  say:  "Zounds,  that  is 
a  woman  among  a  thousand,  a  paragon!"  Another 
one  said:  "A  heavenly  creature,  by  the  gods.  It  is 
worth  while  coming  here  just  to  watch  her  antics. 
Such  a  funny  one  we  haven't  had  here  for  a  long  while." 

Her  husband  noticed  these  goings  on,  with  a  mien 
of  thunder,  and  he  would  perhaps  punch  her  in  the 
ribs  and  say:  "You  old  cow,  what  is  the  matter  with 
you?" 

But  then  she  gave  him  a  superior  glance,  and  would 
murmur:  "Don't  disturb  me!  You  stupid  old  fool, 
don't  you  see  how  hard  I  am  trying  to  please  people? 
Those  over  there,  of  course,  are  only  low  fellows 
from  among  your  own  acquaintance,  but  if  you  don't 
interfere  with  me  I  shall  soon  have  much  more  fashion- 
able guests  here,  as  you'll  see." 

These  illusions  of  hers  were  illuminated  in  a  room 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    229 

with  but  two  tallow  dips,  but  Sali,  her  son,  went  out  "j 
into  the  dark  kitchen,  sat  down  at  the  hearth  and  / 
wept  about  father  and  mother. 

However,  these  first  guests  had  soon  their  fill  of 
this  kind  of  sport,  and  began  to  stay  away,  and  then 
went  back  to  their  old  haunts  where  they  got  better 
drink  and  more  rational  conversation,  and  there  they 
would  laughingly  comment  on  the  queer  peasant 
innkeepers.  Only  once  in  a  while  now  a  single  guest 
of  this  type  would  drop  in,  usually  to  verify  previous 
reports  heard  by  him,  and  such  a  one  found  as  a  rule 
nothing  more  exciting  to  do  than  to  yawn  and  gaze 
at  the  wall.  Or  perhaps  a  band  of  roystering  blades, 
having  heard  the  place  spoken  of  by  others,  would 
wind  up  a  jolly  evening  by  a  brief  visit,  and  then  there 
would  be  noise  enough,  but  not  much  else,  and  the 
old  couple  could  often  not  even  thus  be  roused  from 
their  melancholy.  For  by  that  time  both  wife  and 
husband  had  grown  heartily  sick  of  their  bargain. 
The  new  style  of  living  felt  to  him  almost  as  lonesome 
and  cold  as  the  grave.  For  he  who  as  a  lifelong  farmer 
had  been  used  to  see  the  sun  rise,  to  hear  and  feel 
the  wind  blow,  to  breathe  the  pure  air  of  the  country 
from  morning  till  night,  and  to  have  the  sunshine  come 
and  go,  was  now  cooped  up  within  these  dingy,  hope- 
less walls,  had  to  draw  in  his  lungs  with  every  breath 
the  contaminated  atmosphere  of  this  miserable  neigh- 
borhood, and  when  he  thus  dreamed  day-dreams  of 
the  wide  expanse  of  the  fields  he  once  owned  and 


230  SELDWYLA   FOLKS 

tilled,  a  dull  sort  of  despair  settled  down  on  him  like 
a  pall.  For  hours  and  hours  every  day  he  would 
stare  in  a  dark  humor  at  the  smoke-begrimed  ceiling 
of  his  inn,  having  mostly  little  else  to  do,  and  dull 
visions  of  a  future  unrelieved  by  a  single  ray  of  hope 
would  float  across  his  saturnine  mind.  Insupportable 
his  present  life  seemed  to  him  then.  Then  a  purpose- 
less restlessness  would  come  over  him,  when  he  would 
get  up  from  his  seat  a  dozen  times  an  hour,  run  to  the 
housedoor  and  peer  out,  then  run  back  and  resume  his 
watch.  The  neighbors  had  already  given  him  a 
nickname.  The  "wicked  landlord,"  they  dubbed 
him,  because  his  glance  was  troubled  and  fierce. 

Not  long  and  they  were  totally  impoverished,  had 
not  even  enough  ready  money  left  to  put  in  the  little 
in  drink  and  provisions  needed  for  chance  customers, 
so  that  the  sausages  and  bread,  the  wine  and  liquor 
that  were  ordered  by  guests  had  to  be  got  on  trust. 
Often  they  even  lacked  the  wherewithal  to  make  a 
meal  of,  and  had  to  go  hungry  for  a  while.  It  was  a 
curious  tavern  they  were  keeping.  When  somebody 
strolled  in  by  accident  and  demanded  -refreshment 
they  were  forced  to  send  to  the  nearest  competitor, 
around  the  corner,  and  obtain  a  measure  of  wine  and 
some  food,  paying  for  it  an  hour  or  so  later  when  they 
themselves  had  been  paid.  And  with  all  that,  they 
were  expected  to  play  the  cheerful  host  and  to  talk 
pleasantly  when  their  own  stomachs  were  empty. 
They  were  almost  glad  when  nobody  came;   then  each 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    231 

of  them  would  cower  in  a  dark  corner  by  the  chimney, 
too  lethargic  to  stir. 

When  Mother  Manz  underwent  these  sad  experi- 
ences she  once  more  took  off  her  green  silk  waist,  and 
another  metamorphosis  was  noticed.  As  formerly 
she  had  shown  a  number  of  feminine  vices,  so  now  she 
exhibited  some  feminine  virtues,  and  these  grew  with 
the  evil  times.  She  began  to  practice  patience  and 
sought  to  cheer  up  her  morose  husband  and  to  encour- 
age her  young  son  in  trying  for  remunerative  work. 
She  sacrificed  her  own  comfort  and  convenience  even, 
went  about  like  a  happy  busybody,  and  chattered 
incessantly  merrily,  all  in  an  attempt  to  put  some 
heart  into  the  two  men.  In  short,  she  exerted  in  her 
own  queer  way  an  undoubted  beneficial  influence  on 
them,  and  while  this  did  not  lead  to  anything  tangible 
it  helped  at  least  to  make  things  bearable  for  the  time 
being  and  was  far  better  than  the  reverse  would  have 
been.  She  would  rack  her  poor  brains,  and  give  this 
advice  or  that  how  to  mend  things,  and  if  it  miscarried 
she  would  have  something  fresh  to  propose.  Mostly 
she  proved  in  the  wrong  with  her  counsel,  but  now  and 
then,  in  one  of  the  many  trivial  ways  that  her  petty 
mind  was  dwelling  on  she  was  successful.  When 
the  contrary  resulted,  she  gaily  took  the  blame,  re- 
mained cheerful  under  discouragement,  and,  in  short, 
did  everything  which,  if  she  had  only  done  it  before 
things  were  past  repair,  might  have  really  cured  the 
desperate  situation. 


232  SELDWYLA   FOLKS 

In  order  to  have  at  least  some  food  in  the  house  and 
to  pass  the  dull  time,  father  and  son  now  began  to 
devote  their  leisure  time  to  the  sport  of  fishing,  that 
is,  with  the  angle,  as  far  as  it  is  permissible  to  every- 
body in  Switzerland.  This,  be  it  said,  was  also  one 
of  the  favorite  pastimes  of  those  decrepit  Seldwylians 
who  had  come  to  grief  in  the  world,  most  of  them 
having  failed  in  business.  When  the  weather  was 
favorable,  namely,  and  when  the  fish  took  the  bait 
most  readily,  one  might  see  dozens  of  these  gentry 
wander  off  provided  with  rod  and  pail,  and  on  a  walk 
along  the  shores  of  the  river  you  might  see  one  of  them, 
every  little  distance,  angling,  the  one  in  a  long  brown 
coat  once  of  fashionable  make,  but  with  his  bare  feet 
in  the  water,  the  next  attired  in  a  tattered  blue  frock, 
astride  an  old  willow  tree,  his  ragged  felt  hat  shoved 
over  his  left  ear.  Farther  down  even  you  might  per- 
ceive a  third  whose  meagre  limbs  were  wrapped  in  a 
shabby  old  dressing  gown,  since  that  was  the  only 
article  of  clothing  he  had  left,  his  long  tobacco  pipe 
in  one  hand,  and  an  equally  long  fishing  rod  in  the 
other.  And  in  turning  a  bend  of  the  river  one  was 
apt  to  encounter  another  queer  customer  who  stood, 
quite  nude,  with  his  bald  head  and  his  fat  paunch, 
on  top  of  a  flat  rock  in  the  river.  This  one  had, 
though  almost  living  in  the  water  during  the  warm 
season,  feet  black  as  coal,  so  that  it  looked  from  a 
distance  as  if  he  had  kept  his  boots  on.  Each  of  these 
worthies  had  a  pot  or  a  small  box  at  his  side,  in  which 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    233 

were  swarming  angle  worms,  and  to  obtain  these  they 
were  industriously  digging  at  all  hours  of  the  day  not 
actually  employed  in  fishing.  Whenever  the  sky 
began  to  cloud  up  and  the  air  became  close  and  sultry, 
threatening  rain,  these  quaint  figures  could  be  seen 
most  numerously  along  the  softly  rolling  stream, 
immovable  like  a  congregation  of  ancient  saints  on 
their  pillars.  Without  ever  deigning  to  cast  a  glance 
in  their  direction,  rustics  from  farm  and  forest  used 
to  pass  them  by,  and  the  boatmen  on  the  river  did  not 
even  look  their  way,  whereas  these  lone  fishermen 
themselves  used  to  curse  in  a  forlorn  way  at  these 
disturbers  of  their  prey. 

If  Manz  had  been  told  twelve  years  before  when  he 
was  still  plowing  with  a  fine  team  of  horses  across  the 
hillock  above  the  shore,  that  he,  too,  one  day  would 
join  this  strange  brotherhood  of  the  rod,  he  would 
probably  have  treated  such  a  prophet  rather  roughly. 
But  even  to-day  Manz  hastened  past  those  fishermen 
that  were  rather  crowding  one  another,  until  he  stood, 
upstream  and  alone,  like  a  wrathful  shadow  of  Hades, 
by  himself,  just  as  if  he  preferred  even  in  the  abode  of 
the  damned  a  spot  of  his  own  choosing.  But  to  stand 
thus  with  a  rod,  for  hours  and  hours,  neither  he  nor  his 
son  Sali  had  the  patience,  and  they  remembered  the 
manner  in  which  peasants  in  their  own  neighborhood 
used  to  catch  fish,  especially  to  grasp  them  with  their 
hands  in  the  purling  brooks.  Therefore,  they  had 
their  rods  with  them  only  as  a  ruse,  and  they  walked 


234  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

upstream  further  and  further,  following  the  tortuous 
windings  of  the  water,  where  they  knew  from  of  old 
that  trout,  dainty  and  expensive  trout,  were  to  be  had. 

Meanwhile  Marti,  though  he  had  still  nominal 
possession  of  his  farm,  had  likewise  been  drifting  from 
bad  to  worse,  without  any  gleam  of  hope. 

And  since  all  toil  on  his  land  could  no  more  avert 
the  final  catastrophe,  and  time  hung  heavy  on  his 
hands,  he  also  had  taken  to  this  spoxl„j;)l.fishing. 
Instead  of  laboring  in  his  neglected  fields  he  often 
would  fish  for  days  and  days  at  a  time.  Vreni  at 
such  times  was  not  permitted  to  leave  him,  but  had 
to  follow  him  with  pail  and  nets,  through  wet  meadows 
and  along  brooks  and  waterholes,  whether  there  was 
rain  or  shine,  while  neglecting  her  household  labors 
at  home.  For  at  home  not  a  soul  had  remained, 
neither  was  there  any  need,  since  Marti  little  by  little 
had  already  lost  nearly  all  his  land,  and  now  owned 
but  a  few  more  acres  of  it,  and  these  he  tilled  either 
not  at  all  or  else,  together  with  his  daughter,  in  the 
slovenliest  way. 

Thus  it  came  to  pass  that  he,  too,  one  early  evening 
was  walking  along  the  borders  of  a  rapid  and  deep 
brook,  one  in  which  trout  were  leaping  plentifully, 

iag  rlnudfrj  arhen  without  any  warning  he  encountered 
his  enemy,  Manz,  who  was  coming  along  on  the  other 
side  of  it.    As  soon  as  he  made  him  out  a  fearful 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    235 

anger  began  to  gnaw  at  his  very  vitals.  They  had  not 
been  so  near  each  other  for  years,  except  when  in 
court  facing  the  judge,  and  then  they  had  not  been 
permitted  to  vent  their  hatred  and  spite,  and  now 
Marti  shouted  full  of  venom:  "What  are  you  doing 
here,  you  dog?  Can't  you  stay  in  your  den  in  town? 
Oh,  you  SeldwyHan  loafer!'' 

,"  Don't  talk  as  if  you  were  something  better,  you 
scoundrel,"  growled  Manz,  "for  I  see  you  also  catching 
fish,  and  thus  it  proves  you  have  nothing  better  to  do 
yourself  1" 

"Shut  your  evil  mouth,  you  fiend,"  shrieked  Marti, 
since  to  make  himself  heard  above  the  rush  of  waters 
he  had  to  strain  his  voice.  "You  it  is  who  have 
driven  me  into  misery  and  poverty." 

And  since  the  willows  lining  the  brook  now  also  were 
shaken  by  the  gathering  storm,  Manz  was  forced  to 
shout  even  louder  i^^'^TT  that  is  true,  then  I  should  feel 
glad,  you  woodenheadl" 

And  thus,  a  duel  of  the  most  cruel  taunts  went  on 
from  both  borders  of  the  brook,  and  finally,  driven 
beyond  endurance,  each  of  the  two  half -crazed  men 
ran  along  the  steep  path,  trying  to  find  a  way  across 
the  deep  water.  Of  the  two  Marti  was  the  most 
envenomed  because  he  believed  that  his  foe,  being 
a  landlord  and  managing  an  inn,  must  at  least  have 
food  enough  to  eat  and  liquor  to  drink,  besides  leading 
a  jolly  sort  of  life,  while  he  was  barely  able  to  eke  out 
a  meal   or  two   on   the   coarsest  fare.    Besides,   the 


236  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

memory  of  his  wasted  farm  stung  him  to  violence. 
But  Manz,  too,  now  stepped  along  lively  enough  on  his 
side  of  the  water,  and  behind  him  his  son,  who,  instead 
of  sharing  his  father's  grim  interest  in  the  quarrel, 
peeped  curiously  and  amazedly  at  Vreni.  She,  the 
girl,  followed  closely  behind  her  father,  deeply  ashamed 
at  what  she  heard  and  looking  at  the  ground,  so  that 
her  curly  brown  hair  fell  over  her  flushed  face.  She 
carried  in  her  hand  a  wooden  fishpail,  and  in  the  other 
her  shoes  and  stockings,  and  had  shortened  her  skirt 
to  avoid  its  dragging  in  the  wet.  But  since  Sali 
was  walking  on  the  other  side  and  seemed  to  watch 
her,  she  had  allowed  her  skirt  to  drop,  out  of  modesty, 
and  was  now  thrice  embarrassed  and  annoyed,  since 
she  had  not  alone  to  carry  all,  pail,  nets,  shoes  and 
stockings,  but  also  to  hold  up  her  skirt  and  to  feel 
humiliated  because  of  this  bitter  and  vulgar  quarrel. 
If  she  had  lifted  her  eyes  and  read  Sali's  face,  she  would 
have  seen  that  he  no  longer  looked  either  proud  or 
elegant  as  hitherto  his  image  had  dwelt  in  her  mind, 
but  that,  on  the  contrary,  the  young  man  also  wore 
a  distressed  and  humbled  mien. 

But  while  Vreni  so  entirely  ashamed  and  discon- 
certed kept  her  eyes  on  the  ground,  and  SaH  stared  in 
amazement  at  this  dainty  and  graceful  being  that  had 
so  suddenly  crossed  his  path,  and  who  seemed  so 
weighed  down  by  the  whole  occurrence,  they  did  not 
properly  observe  that  their  fathers  by  now  had  become 
silent  but  were  both  of  them  striving  in  increased 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    237 

rage  to  reach  the  small  wooden  bridge  a  short  distance 
off  and  which  led  across  to  the  other  shore. 

Just  then  the  first  forks  of  lightning  were  weirdly 
illuminating  the  scene.  The  thunder  was  rolling- in  the 
dun  clouds,  and  heavy  drops  of  rain  were  already 
falHng  singly,  when  these  two  men,  almost  driven  out 
of  their  senses,  simultaneously  reached  the  tiny  bridge 
with  their  hurried  and  determined  tread,  'and  ~as 
soon  as  near  enough  seized  each  other  with  the  iron 
grip  of  the  rustic,  striking  with  all  the  power  they 
could  summon  with  clenched  fists  into  the  hateful 
face  of  the  adversary.  Blows  rained  fast  and  furious/ 
and  each  of  the  combatants  gnashed  his  teeth  with  rag^. 
0  ^  It  is  not  a  becoming  nor  a  handsome  sight  to  see 
elderly  men  usually  soberminded  and  slow  to  act  in 
a  personal  encounter,  no  matter  whether  occasioned 
by  anger,  provocation  or  self-defense,  but  such  a 
spectacle  is  harmless  in  comparison  with  that  of  two 
aged  men  who  attack  each  other  with  uncontrolled 
fury  because  while  knowing  the  other  deeply  and  well, 
now  out  of  the  depths  of  that  very  knowledge  and  out 
of  a  fixed  belief  that  the  other  has  destroyed  his  very 
life,  seize  each  other  with  their  naked  fists  and  try 
to  commit  murder  from  unrequited  revenge.  But 
thus  these  two  men  now  did,  both  with  hair  gray 
to  the  roots.  More  than  fifty  years  ago  they  had 
last  fought  with  each  other  as  lads,  merely  out  of  a 
youthful  spirit  of  rivalry,  but  during  the  half  century 
succeeding  they  had  never  laid  hands  on  each  other, 


238  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

except  when,  as  good  neighbors  and  fellow-peasants, 
they  had  grasped  each  other's  hand  in  peace  and  con- 
cord, but  even  that,  with  their  rather  dry  and  un- 
demonstrative ways,  but  rarely.  After  the  first  two 
or  three  frenzied  blows,  they  both  became  silent,  and 
now  they  struggled  and  wrestled  in  all  the  agony  of 
senile  impotence,  their  stiffened  muscles  and  tendons 
stretched  with  the  tension,  murder  in  their  glaring  eyes, 
each  groaning  with  the  supreme  effort  to  master  the 
other.  They  now  attempted,  both  of  them,  to  end  the 
fearsome  fight  by  pushing  the  other  over  into  the 
rushing  flood  below,  the  slender  supports  of  the  rails 
creaking  under  the  pressure.  But  now  at  last  their 
children  had  reached  the  spot,  and  Sali,  with  a  bound, 
came  to  his  father's  help,  to  enable  the  latter  to  make 
an  end  of  the  hated  foe,  Marti  being  just  about  spent 
and  exhausted.  But  Vreni  also  sprang,  dropping 
all  her  burdens,  to  the  rescue,  and  after  the  manner  of 
women  in  such  cases,  embracing  her  father  tightly 
and  really  thus  rendering  him  unable  to  move  and 
defend  himself.  Tears  streamed  from  her  eyes,  and 
she  looked  with  silent  appeal  at  Sali,  just  at  the  mo- 
ment when  he  was  about  also  to  grasp  old  Marti 
by  the  throat.  Involuntarily  he  laid  his  hand  upon 
the  arm  of  his  father,  thus  restraining  him,  and-  next 
attempted  to  wrest  his  father  loose.  The  combat 
thus  grew  into  a  mutual  swaying  back  and  forth,  and 
/  the  whole  group  was  impotently  straining  and  pushing, 
without  either  party  coming  to  a  rest. 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    239 

But  during  this  confused  jumbling  the  two  young 
people  had,  interfering  between  their  elders,  more  and 
more  approached  each  other,  and  just  at  this  juncture 
a  break  in  the  dark  bank  of  clouds  overhead  let  the 
piercing  rays  of  the  setting  sun  reach  the  scene  and 
illuminate  it  with  a  blinding  flash,  and  then  it  was  that 
Sali  looked  full  into  the  countenance  of  the  girl,  rosy 
and  embeUished  by  the  excitement.  It  was  to  Sali 
like  a  glimpse  of  another,  a  brighter  and  more  heavenly 
world.  And  Vreni  at  the  same  instant,  too,  quickly 
observed  the  impression  she  had  made  on  her  one- 
time playmate,  and  she  smiled  for  the  fraction  of  a 
second  at  him,  right  in  the  midst  of  her  tears  and  her 
fright.  Sali,  however,  recovered  himself  instantly, 
warned  by  the  energetic  struggles  of  his  father  to 
shake  off  the  restraining  arm  of  his  son.  By  holding 
him  firmly  and  by  speaking  with  authority  to  his 
father,  he  managed  to  calm  him  down  at  last  and  to 
push  him  out  of  the  reach  of  the  other.  Both  old 
fellows  breathed  hard  at  this  outcome  of  their  desperate 
fight,  and-  began  again  to  heap  insults  on  one  another, 
finally  turning  away,  however.  Their  children,  though, 
were  now  silent  in  the  midst  of  their  relief.  But  in 
turning  away  and  separating  they  for  a  moment 
glanced  once  more  at  each  other,  and  their  two  hands, 
cool  and  moist  from  the  water  and  the  rain,  met  and 
each  noticed  a  slight  pressure. 

When  the  two  old  men  turned  from  the  scene,  the 
clouds  once  more  closed,  darkness  fell,  and  the  rain 


240  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

now  poured  down  in  torrents.  Manz  preceded  his 
son  upon  the  obscured  wet  paths,  bent  to  the  cold 
rain,  and  the  terrific  excitement  still  trembled  in  his 
features.  His  teeth  were  chattering,  and  unseen 
tears  of  defeated  hatred  ran  into  his  stubbly  beard. 
He  let  them  run,  and  did  not  even  wipe  them  away, 
because  he  was  ashamed  of  them,  and  had  no  wish 
for  his  son  to  see  them. 

But  his  son  had  seen  nothing.  He  went  through 
rain  and  storm  in  an  ecstasy  of  happiness.  He  had 
forgotten  all,  his  misery  and  the  awful  scene  just 
witnessed,  his  poverty  and  the  darkness  around  him. 
In  his  heart  there  was  a  happy  song.  Light  and 
warm  and  full  of  joy  everything  within  him  was. 
He  felt  as  rich  and  powerful  as  a  king's  son.  He  saw 
nothing  but  the  smile  of  a  second.  He  saw  the.  beauti- 
ful face  lit  up  by  the  miracle  of  love.  And  he  returned 
that  smile  only  now,  a  half  hour  later,  and  he  laughed 
at  the  beautiful  face  and  returned  its  gaze,  looking 
into  the  night  and  storm  as  into  a  paradise,  the  face 
shining  through  the  murk  of  rain  like  a  guiding  star. 
Indeed,  he  beUeved  Vreni  could  not  help  noticing  his 
answering  smile  miles  away,  and  was  smiling  back  at 
him. 

Next  day  his  father  was  stiff  and  sore  and  would 
not  leave  the  house,  and  to  him  the  whole  wretched 
meeting  with  his  foe  and  the  whole  development  of 
the  enmity  between  them,  and  the  long  years  of  misery 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    241 

that  had  grown  out  of  it  suddenly  seemed  to  take  on 
a  new  form  and  to  become  much  plainer,  while  its 
influence  spread  around  even  in  his  dusky  tavern. 
So  much  so  that  both  Manz  and  his  wife  were  moving 
about  like  ghosts,  out  of  one  room  into  another,  into 
the  cheerless  kitchen  and  the  bedchambers,  and  thence 
back  again  into  the  equally  bare  and  dark  guest 
room,  where  not  a  person  was  to  be  seen  all  day. 
At  last  they  both  began  to  grumble,  one  blaming  the 
other  for  things  that  had  gone  wrong,  dropping  into 
an  uneasy  slumber  from  time  to  time  from  which  a 
nightmare  would  waken  them  with  a  start,  and  in 
which  their  unquiet  consciences  upbraided  them  for 
past  misdeeds.  Only  Sali  heard  and  saw  nothing  of 
all  this,  for  his  mind  was  entirely  engrossed  with 
Vreni.  Still  the  illusion  was  strong  with  him  of  being 
immeasurably  wealthy,  but  beside  that  he  had  a 
hallucination  that  he  was  powerful  and  had  learned 
how  to  conduct  the  most  complicated  and  important 
affairs  in  the  world.  He  felt  as  if  he  knew  all  the 
wisdom  on  earth,  everything  great  and  beautiful. 
And  forever  there  stood  before  his  dreamy  soul,  clear 
and  distinct,  that  great  happening  of  the  night  before, 
that  wonderful  creature  with  her  enticing  smile,  that 
smile  which  had  shed  a  blinding  flash  of  happiness  on 
his  path.  The  consciousness  of  this  great  adventure 
dwelt  with  him  like  an  unspeakable  secret,  of  which 
he  was  the  sole  possessor  and  which  had  fallen  to  his 
share  direct  from  heaven.     It  afforded  him  constant 


242  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

food  for  thought  and  wonderment.  And  yet  with  all 
that  it  seemed  also  to  him  that  he  had  always  known 
this  would  happen  to  him,  and  as  if  what  now  filled 
him  with  such  marvelous  sweetness  had  always  dwelt 
in  his  heart.  For  nothing  is  just  like  this  happiness 
of  love,  this  sharing  of  a  mystery  between  two  persons, 
which  approaches  human  beings  in  the  form  of  un- 
speakable bliss,  yet  in  a  form  so  clear  and  precise, 
sanctioned  and  sanctified  by  the  priest,  and  endowed 
with  a  name  so  mellifluously  fine  that  no  other  word 
sounds  half  so  sweet  as  Love. 

On  that  day  Sali  felt  neither  lonesome  nor  unhappy; 
where  he  went  and  stood  Vreni's  image  followed 
him  and  glowed  in  his  inner  self;  and  this  without 
a  moment's  respite,  one  hour  after  another.  But 
while  his  whole  being  was  engrossed  with  the  lovely 
image  of  the  girl  at  the  same  time  its  outlines  con- 
stantly became  blurred,  so  that,  after  all,  he  lost  the 
faculty  of  reproducing  it  clearly.  If  he  had  been 
asked  to  describe  her  in  detail  he  would  have  been 
unable  to  do  it.  Always  he  saw  her  standing  near 
him,  with  that  wizard  smile;  he  felt  her  warm  breath 
and  the  whole  indefinable  charm  of  her  presence, 
but  it  was  for  all  that  like  something  which  is  seen 
but  once  and  then  vanishes  forever.  Like  something 
the  potency  of  which  one  cannot  escape  and  yet  which 
one  never  can  know.  In  dreaming  thus  he  was  able 
to  recall  fully  the  features  of  her  when  still  a  tiny 
maiden,  and  to  experience  a  most  pronounced  pleasure 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    243 

in  doing  so,  but  the  one  Vreni  of  yesterday  he  could 
not  recall  as  plainly.  If  indeed  he  had  never  seen 
Vreni  again  it  might  be  that  his  memory  would  have 
pieced  her  personality  together,  little  by  little,  until 
not  the  slightest  bit  had  been  wanting.  But  now  all 
the  strength  of  his  mind  did  not  suffice  to  render  him 
this  service,  and  this  was  because  his  senses,  his  eyes, 
imperatively  demanded  their  rights  and  their  solace, 
and  when  in  the  afternoon  the  sun  was  shining  bril- 
liantly and  warm,  gilding  the  roofs  of  all  these  black- 
ened housetops,  Sali  almost  unconsciously  found  him- 
self on  the  way  towards  his  old  home  in  the  country, 
which  now  seemed  to  him  a  heavenly  Jerusalem  with 
twelve  shining  portals,  and  which  set  his  heart  to 
beating  feverishly  as  he  approached  it. 

While  on  his  way,  though,  he  met  Vreni's  father, 
who  with  hurried  and  disordered  steps  was  going  in 
the  direction  of  the  town.  Marti  looked  wild  and 
unkempt,  his  gray  beard  had  not  been  shorn  for  many 
weeks,  and  altogether  he  presented  indeed  the  picture 
of  what  he  was:  a  wicked  and  lost  peasant  who  had 
got  rid  of  his  land  and  who  now  was  intent  on  doing 
evil  to  others.  Nevertheless,  Sali  under  these  radi- 
cally different  circumstances  did  not  regard  the  crazed 
old  man  with  hatred  but  rather  with  fear  and  awe,  as 
though  his  own  life  was  in  the  hands  of  this  man  and 
as  though  it  were  better  to  obtain  it  by  favor  than 
by  force.  Marti,  however,  measured  the  young  man 
with  a  black  look,  glancing  at  him  from  his  feet  up- 


244  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

wards,  and  then  he  went  his  way  silently.  But  this 
encounter  came  most  opportunely  to  Sali.  For  seeing 
the  old  man  leaving  the  village  on  an  errand  it  for 
the  first  time  became  quite  clear  to  him  what  his  own 
object  had  been  in  coming.  Thus  he  proceeded 
stealthily  on  by-paths  towards  the  village,  and  when 
reaching  it  cautiously  felt  his  way  through  the  small 
lanes  until  he  had  Marti's  house  and  outbuildings 
right  in  front  of  him. 

For  several  years  past  he  had  not  seen  this  spot  so 
closely.  For  even  while  he  still  dwelt  in  the  village 
itself  he  had  been  forbidden  to  approach  the  Marti 
farm,  avoiding  meeting  the  family  with  whom  his 
father  lived  on  terms  of  enmity.  Therefore  he  was 
now  full  of  wonder  at  what,  just  the  same,  he  had  had 
ample  opportunity  to  observe  in  the  case  of  his  own 
father^s  property.  Amazedly  he  stared  at  this  once 
prosperous  and  well-cultivated  farm  now  turned  into 
a  waste.  For  Marti  had  had  one  section  after  another 
of  his  property  sequestrated  by  orders  of  the  court, 
and  now  all  that  was  left  was  the  dwelling  house  itself 
and  the  space  around  it,  with  a  bit  of  vegetable  garden 
and  a  small  field  up  above  the  river,  which  latter 
Marti  had  for  some  time  been  defending  in  a  last 
desperate  struggle  with  the  judicial  power. 

There  was,  it  is  true,  no  longer  any  question  of  a 
rational  cultivation  of  the  soil  which  once  had  borne 
so  plentifully  and  where  the  wheat  had  waved  like  a 
golden  sea  toward  harvest  time.     Instead  of  that  now 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    245 

there  was  a  mixed  crop  sprouting:  rye,  turnips,  wheat 
and  potatoes,  with  some  other  ''garden  truck"  inter- 
mingling, all  from  seed  that  had  come  from  paper 
packages  left  over  or  purchased  in  small  quantities 
at  random,  so  that  the  whole  cultivated  space  looked 
like  a  negligently  tended  vegetable  bed,  in  which  cab- 
bage, parsley  and  turnips  predominated.  It  was 
plainly  to  be  seen  that  the  owner  of  it,  too  lazy  or 
indifferent  to  do  his  farmer's  work  properly,  had  mainly 
had  in  mind  to  raise  such  things  as  would  enable  him 
to  live  from  day  to  day.  Here  a  handful  of  carrots 
had  been  torn  out,  there  a  mess  of  cabbage  or  potatoes, 
and  the  rest  had  fared  on  for  good  or  ill,  and  much  of 
it  lay  rotting  on  the  ground.  Everybody,  too,  had 
been  in  the  habit  of  treading  around  and  in  it  all,  just 
as  he  listed,  and  the  one  broad  field  now  presented 
nearly  the  desolate  appearance  of  the  once  ownerless 
field  whence  had  grown  all  the  mischief  that  had 
wrought  havoc  and  brought  the  two  neighbors  of  old 
down  so  low.  About  the  house  itself  there  was  no 
visible  sign  at  all  of  farm  work.  The  stable  stood 
vacant,  its  door  hung  loosely  from  the  broken  staples, 
and  innumerable  spider's  webs,  grown  thick  and 
large  during  the  summer,  were  shimmering  in  the 
sunshine.  Against  the  broad  door  of  a  barn,  where 
once  were  housed  the  fruits  of  the  field,  hung  untidy 
fishermen's  nets  and  other  sporting  apparatus,  in 
grim  token  of  abandoned  farming.  In  the  farmyard 
was  to  be  seen  not  a  single  chicken,  pigeon  or  turkey, 


246  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

no  dog  or  cat.  The  well  only  was  the  sole  live  thing. 
But  even  its  clear  water  no  longer  flowed  in  a  regular 
gush  through  the  spout,  but  trickled  through  the 
broken  tube,  wasting  itself  on  the  ground  and  forming 
dark  pools  on  the  soggy  earth,  a  perfect  symbol  of 
neglect.  For  while  it  would  not  have  taken  much 
time  or  trouble  to  mend  the  broken  tube,  now  Vreni 
was  forced  to  use  the  water  she  needed  for  her  domestic 
tasks,  for  cooking  and  laundry  work,  from  the  trick- 
lings  that  escaped.  The  house  itself,  too,  was  a  sad 
thing  to  see.  The  window  panes  were  all  broken 
and  pasted  over  with  paper.  Yet  the  windows, 
after  all,  were  the  most  cheerful-looking  objects,  for 
Vreni  kept  them  clean  and  shiny  with  soap  and  water, 
as  shiny,  in  fact,  as  her  own  eyes,  and  the  latter,  too, 
had  to  make  up  for  all  lack  of  finery.  And  as  the  curly 
hair  and  the  bright  kerchiefs  made  amends  for  much  in 
her,  so  the  wild  growths  stretching  up  toward  windows 
and  along  the  jamb  of  the  doorsills,  and  almost  cover- 
ing the  very  broken  panes  on  the  windows,  gave  a 
charm  to  this  tumbledown  homestead.  A  wilderness 
of  scarlet  bean  blossoms,  of  portulac  and  sweet-scented 
flowers  ran  riot  along  the  house  front,  and  these  in  their 
vivid  colors  clambered  along  anything  that  would 
give  them  a  hold,  such  as  the  handle  of  a  rake,  a  stake 
or  broken  rod.  Vreni's  grandfather  had  left  behind 
a  rusty  halberd  or  spontoon,  such  as  were  weapons 
much  in  vogue  in  his  days,  for  he  had  fought  as  a 
mercenary  abroad.    Now  this  rusty  implement  had 

I 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    247 

been  stuck  into  the  ground,  and  the  willowy  tendrils 
of  the  beanstalk  embraced  it  tightly.  More  bean 
plants  groped  their  way  up  a  shattered  ladder  which 
had  leaned  against  the  house  for  ages,  and  thence  their 
blossoms  hung  into  the  windows  as  Vreni's  curls  hung 
into  her  pretty  face. 

This  farmyard,  so  much  more  picturesque  than 
prosperous,  lay  somewhat  apart  from  its  neighbors, 
and  therefore  was  not  exposed  so  much  to  their  in- 
spection. But  for  the  moment  as  Sali  stared  and 
watched  nothing  human  at  all  was  visible.  Sali 
thus  was  undisturbed  in  his  reflections  as  he  leaned 
with  his  back  against  the  barndoor,  about  thirty  paces 
away,  and  studied  with  attentive  mien  the  deserted 
yard.  He  had  been  doing  this  for  some  time  when 
Vreni  at  last  appeared  under  the  housedoor  and  gazed 
calmly  and  thoughtfully  before  her  as  if  thinking 
deeply  of  only  one  matter.  SaH  himself  did  not  stir 
but  contemplated  her  as  he  would  have  done  a  fine 
painting.  But  after  a  brief  while  her  eyes  traveled 
towards  him,  and  she  perceived  him.  Then  she  and 
he  stood  without  motion  and  looked,  looked  just  as 
if  they  did  not  see  living  beings  but  aerial  phenomena. 
But  at  last  Sali  slowly  stood  upright,  and  just  as 
slowly  went  across  the  farmyard  and  towards  Vreni. 
When  he  was  but  a  step  or  so  from  her,  she  stretched 
out  her  hands  toward  him  and  pronounced  only  the 
one  word:   "Sali!" 

He  seized  her  hands  speechlessly,   and  then  con- 


248  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

tinued  gazing  into  her  face  which  had  suddenly  grown 
pale.  Tears  filled  her  eyes,  and  gradually  under  his 
gaze  she  flushed  painfully,  and  at  last  she  said  in  a 
very  low  voice:   "What  do  you  want  here,  SaH?" 

"Only  to  see  you,"  he  replied.  "Will  we  not  be- 
come good  friends  again?" 

"And  our  fathers,  Sali?"  asked  Vreni,  turning  her 
weeping  face  aside,  since  her  hands  had  been  imprisoned 
by  him. 

"Must  we  bear  the  burden  of  what  they  have  done 
and  have  become?"  answered  Sali.  "it  may  be  that 
we  ourselves  can  redeem  the  evil  they  have  wrought, 
if  we  only  love  each  other  well  enough  and  stand  to- 
gether against  the  future." 

"No,  Sali,  no  good  will  ever  come  of  it  all,"  replied 
Vreni  sobbingly;  "therefore  better  go  your  ways, 
Sali,  in  God's  name." 

"Are  you  alone,  Vreni?"  he  asked.  "May  I  come 
in  a  minute?" 

"Father  has  gone  to  town  for  a  spell,  as  he  told  me 
before  leaving,"  remarked  Vreni,  "to  do  your  father 
a  bad  turn.  But  I  cannot  let  you  in  here,  because  it 
may  be  that  later  on  you  would  not  be  able  to  leave 
again  without  attracting  notice.  As  yet  everything 
around  here  is  still  and  nobody  about.  Therefore, 
I  beg  of  you,  go  before  it  is  too  late." 

"No,  I  could  not  leave  you  without  speaking," 
was  his  answer,  and  his  voice  shook  with  emotion. 
"Since  yesterday  I  have  had  to  think  of  you  con- 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    249 

stantly,  and  I  cannot  go.  We  must  speak  to  each 
other,  at  least  for  half  an  hour  or  an  hour;  that  will 
be  a  relief  to  both  of  us." 

Vreni  reflected  a  minute.  Then  she  said  thought- 
fully: "Toward  sundown  I  shall  walk  out  toward  our 
field.  You  know  the  one  I  mean  —  we  have  but  the 
one  left.  I  must  pick  some  vegetables.  I  feel  sure 
that  nobody  else  will  be  there,  because  they  are  mow- 
ing all  of  them  in  a  different  direction.  If  you  insist 
on  coming,  you  may  come  there,  but  for  the  present 
go  and  take  care  nobody  else  sees  you.  Even  if  no- 
body at  all  bothers  any  longer  about  us,  they  would 
nevertheless  gossip  so  much  about  it  that  father  could 
not  fail  to  hear  it." 

They  now  dropped  their  hands,  but  once  more 
seized  them,  and  both  also  asked:  "How  do  you  do?" 

But  instead  of  answering  each  other  they  repeated 
the  same  phrase  over  and  over  again,  since  they, 
after  the  manner  of  lovers,  no  longer  were  able  to 
guide  or  control  their  words.  Thus  the  only  answer 
each  received  was  given  with  the  eyes,  and  without 
saying  anything  more  to  each  other  they  finally  sepa- 
rated, half  sad,  half  joyful. 

"Go  there  at  once,"  she  called  after  him;  "I  shall 
be  there  almost  as  soon  as  yourself." 

Sali  followed  this  advice,  and  went  at  once  up  the 
steep  path  that  led  to  the  hill  where  the  busy  world 
seemed  so  far  away  and  where  the  soul  expanded, 
to  the  undulating  fields  that  stretched  out  far  on  both 


250  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

sides,  where  the  brooding  July  sun  shone  and  the 
drifting  white  clouds  sailed  overhead,  where  the  ripe 
corn  in  the  gentle  breeze  bobbed  up  and  down,  where 
the  river  below  glinted  blue,  and  all  these  scenes  of 
past  happiness  filled  his  soul  after  a  long  dearth  with 
peace  and  gentle  joy,  and  his  griefs  and  fears  were 
left  below.  At  full  length  he  threw  himself  down 
amid  the  half-shade  of  the  upstanding  wheat,  there 
where  it  marked  the  boundary  of  Marti's  waste  acres, 
and  peered  with  unblinking  eyes  into  the  gold-rimmed 
clouds. 

Although  scarcely  a  quarter  hour  elapsed  until 
Vreni  followed  him,  and  although  he  had  thought  of 
nothing  but  his  bliss  and  his  love,  dreaming  of  it  and 
building  castles  in  the  air,  he  was  yet  surprised  when 
Vreni  suddenly  stood  at  his  side,  smiling  down  at  him, 
and  with  a  start  he  rose. 

"Vreni,"  he  exclaimed  in  a  voice  that  trembled 
with  love,  and  she,  still  and  smiling,  tendered  both 
her  hands  to  him.  Hand  in  hand  they  then  paced 
along  the  whispering  corn,  slowly  down  towards  the 
river,  and  then  as  slowly  back  again,  with  scarcely 
any  words.  This  short  walk  they  repeated  twice  or 
thrice,  back  and  forth,  still,  blissful,  and  quiet,  so 
that  this  young  pair  now  resembled  likewise  a  pair 
of  stars,  coming  and  going  across  the  gentle  curve 
of  the  hillock  and  adown  the  declivity  beyond,  just 
as  had  once,  years  and  years  ago,  the  accurately 
measuring  plows  of  the   two  rustic  neighbors.    But 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    251 

as  they  once  on  this  pilgrimage  lifted  their  eyes  from 
the  blue  cornflowers  along  the  edge  of  the  field  where 
they  had  rested,  they  suddenly  saw  a  swarthy  fellow, 
like  a  darksome  star,  precede  them  on  their  path,  a 
fellow  of  whom  they  could  not  tell  whence  he  had 
appeared  so  entirely  without  warning.  Probably  he 
had  been  lying  in  the  corn,  and  Vreni  shuddered, 
while  Sali  murmured  with  affright:  "It's  the  black 
fiddler!"  And  indeed,  the  fellow  ambling  along  be- 
fore them  carried  under  his  arm  a  violin,  and  truly, 
too,  he  looked  swarthy  enough.  A  black  crushed 
felt  hat,  a  black  blouse  and  hair  and  beard  pitchdark, 
even  his  unwashed  hands  of  that  hue,  he  made  the 
impression  of  a  man  carrying  along  an  evil  omen. 
This  man  led  a  wandering  life.  He  did  all  sorts  of 
jobs:  mended  kettles  and  pans,  helped  charcoal 
burners,  aided  in  pitching  in  the  woods,  and  only 
used  his  fiddle  and  earned  money  that  way  when  the 
peasants  somewhere  were  celebrating  a  festival  or 
holiday,  a  wedding  or  big  dance,  and  such  like.  Sali 
and  Vreni  meant  to  leave  the  fiddler  by  himself. 
Quiet  as  mice  they  slowly  walked  behind  him,  thinking 
that  he  would  probably  turn  off  the  road  soon.  He 
seemed  to  pay  no  attention  to  the  two,  never  turning 
around  and  keeping  perfect  silence.  With  that  they 
felt  a  weird  influence  coming  from  the  fellow,  so  that 
they  had  not  the  courage  to  openly  avoid  him  and 
turning  aside  unconsciously  they  followed  in  his 
tracks  to  the  very  end  of  the  field,  the  spot  where  that 


252  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

unjust  heap  of  stone  and  rock  lay,  the  one  that  had 
started  the  two  families  on  their  downward  road. 
Innumerable  poppies  and  wild  roses  had  grown  there 
and  were  now  in  full  bloom,  wherefore  this  stony  desert 
lay  like  an  enormous  splotch  of  blood  along  the  road. 

All  at  once  the  black  fiddler  sprang  with  one  jump 
on  top  one  of  the  irregular  ramparts  of  stone,  the  rim 
of  which  was  also  scarlet  with  wild  blossoms,  then 
turned  himself  around,  and  threw  a  glance  in  every 
direction.  The  young  couple  stopped  and  looked  up 
at  him  shamefaced.  For  turn  they  would  not  in 
face  of  him,  and  to  proceed  along  on  the  same  path 
would  have  taken  them  into  the  village,  which  they 
also  wished  to  avoid. 

He  looked  at  them  keenly,  and  then  he  shouted: 
"I  know  you  two.  You  are  the  children  of  those  who 
have  stolen  from  me  this  soil.  I  am  glad  to  see  you 
here,  and  to  notice  how  the  theft  has  benefited  you. 
Surely,  I  shall  also  live  to  see  you  two  go  before  me 
the  way  of  all  flesh.  Yes,  look  at  me,  you  little  fools. 
Do  you  like  my  nose,  eh?" 

And  indeed,  he  had  a  terrible  nose,  one  which  broke 
forth  from  his  emaciated  swarthy  face  like  a  beak, 
or  rather  more  like  a  good-sized  club.  As  if  it  had  been 
pasted  on  to  his  bony  face  it  looked  and  below  that 
the  tiny  mouth,  in  the  shape  of  a  small  round  hole, 
singularly  contracted  and  expanded,  and  out  of  this 
hole  his  words  constantly  tumbled,  whistling  or  buzz- 
ing or  hissing.    His  small  twisted  felt  hat,  shapeless 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    253 

and  shabby,  pushed  over  his  left  ear,  heightened  the 
uncanny  e£fect.  This  piece  of  his  apparel  seemed  to 
change  its  form  with  every  motion  of  the  queer- 
looking  head,  although  in  reality  it  sat  immovable 
on  his  pate.  And  of  the  eyes  of  this  strange  fellow 
nothing  was  to  be  noticed  but  their  whites,  since  the 
pupils  were  flashing  around  all  the  time,  just  as  though 
they  were  two  hares  jumping  about  to  escape  being 
seized. 

"Look  at  me  well,"  he  then  continued.  "Your 
two  fathers  know  all  about  me,  and  everybody  in 
the  village  can  identify  me  by  my  nose.  Years  ago 
they  were  spreading  the  rumor  that  a  good  piece  of 
money  was  awaiting  the  heir  to  these  fields  here.  I 
have  called  at  court  twenty  times.  But  since  I  had 
no  baptismal  certificate  and  since  my  friends,  the 
vagrants,  who  witnessed  my  birth,  have  no  voice  that 
the  law  will  recognize,  the  time  set  has  elapsed,  and 
they  have  cheated  me  out  of  the  little  sum,  large 
enough  all  the  same  to  permit  my  emigrating  to  a 
better  country.  I  have  implored  your  fathers  at  that 
time,  again  and  again,  to  testify  for  me  to  the  effect 
that  they  at  least  believed  me,  according  to  their 
conscience,  to  be  the  rightful  heir.  But  they  drove 
me  from  their  farms,  and  now,  ha!  ha!  ha!  they  them- 
selves have  gone  to  the  devil.  Well  and  good,  that 
is  the  way  things  turn  out  in  this  world,  and  I  don't 
care  a  rap.  And  now  I  will  just  the  same  fiddle  if 
you  want  to  dance." 


254  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

With  that  he  was  down  again  on  the  ground  beside 
them,  at  a  mighty  bound,  and  seeing  they  did  not 
want  to  dance  he  quickly  disappeared  in  the  direction 
of  the  village;  there  the  crop  was  to  be  brought  in 
towards  nightfall,  and  there  would  be  gay  doings. 

When  he  was  gone  the  young  couple  sat  down, 
discouraged  and  out  of  spirits,  among  the  wilderness 
of  stone.  They  let  their  hands  drop  and  hung  their 
poor  heads  too.  For  the  sudden  appearance  of  the 
vagrant  fiddler  had  wiped  out  the  happy  memories 
of  their  childhood,  and  their  joyous  mood  in  which 
they,  like  they  used  in  their  younger  days,  had  wan- 
dered about  in  the  green  and  among  the  corn,  had 
gone  with  him.  They  sat  once  more  on  the  hard 
soil  of  their  misery,  and  the  happy  gleam  of  childhood 
had  vanished,  and  their  minds  were  oppressed  and 
darkened. 

But  all  at  once  Vreni  remembered  the  fiddler^s 
nose,  and  his  whole  odd  figure,  and  she  burst  out 
laughing  loud  and  merry.  She  exclaimed:  "The  poor 
fellow  surely  looks  too  queer.  What  a  nose  he  had!" 
And  with  that  a  charmingly  careless  merriment  flashed 
out  of  her  brown  eyes,  just  as  though  she  had  only 
been  waiting  for  the  fiddler's  nose  to  chase  away  all 
the  sad  clouds  from  her  mind.  Sali,  too,  regarded 
the  girl,  and  noticed  this  sunny  gaiety.  But  by  that 
time  Vreni  had  already  forgotten  the  immediate 
cause  of  her  gleefulness,  and  now  she  laughed  on  her 
own  account  into  Sali's  face.    Sali,  dazed  and  aston- 


I 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    255 

ished,  involuntarily  gazed  at  the  girl  with  laughing 
mouth,  like  a  hungry  man  who  suddenly  is  offered 
sweetened  v/heat  bread,  and  he  said:  *' Heavens, 
Vreni,  how  pretty  you  are!" 

And  Vreni,  for  sole  answer,  laughed  but  the  more, 
and  out  of  the  mere  enjoyment  of  her  sweet  temper 
she  gurgled  a  few  melodious  notes  that  sounded  to  the 
boy  like  the  warblings  of  a  nightingale. 

"Oh,  you  little  witch,"  he  exclaimed  enraptured, 
"where  have  you  learned  such  tricks?  What  sorcery 
are  you  applying  to  me?  " 

"Sorcery?"  she  murmured  astonished,  in  a  voice 
of  sweet  enchantment,  and  she  seized  Sali's  hand  anew. 
"There's  no  sorcery  about  this.  How  gladly  I  should 
have  laughed  now  and  then,  with  reason  or  without. 
Now  and  then,  indeed,  all  by  myself,  I  have  laughed 
a  bit,  because  I  couldn't  help  it,  but  my  heart  was  not 
in  it.  But  now  it's  different.  Now  I  should  like  to 
laugh  all  the  time,  holding  your  hand  and  feeling 
happy.  I  should  like  to  hold  your  hand  forever,  and 
look  into  your  eyes.     Do  you  too  love  me  a  little  bit?  " 

"Ah,  Vreni,"  he  answered,  and  looked  full  and 
affectionately  into  her  eyes,  "I  never  cared  for  any 
girl  before.  And  I  have  never  until  now  taken  a  good 
look  at  another  girl.  It  always  seemed  to  me  as 
though  some  time  or  other  I  should  have  to  love  you, 
and  without  knowing  it,  I  think,  you  have  always 
been  in  my  thoughts." 

"And  so  it  was  in  my  case,"  said  Vreni,  "only  more 


256  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

so.  For  you  never  would  look  at  me  and  did  not 
know  what  had  become  of  me  and  what  I  had  grown 
into.  But  as  for  me,  I  have  from  time  to  time,  se- 
cretly, of  course,  and  from  afar,  cast  a  glance  at  you, 
and  knew  well  enough  what  you  were  like.  Do  you 
still  remember  how  often  as  children  we  used  to  come 
here?  You  know  in  the  little  baby  cart?  What  small 
folk  we  were  those  days,  and  how  long,  long  ago 
that  all  is!  One  would  think  we  were  old,  real  old 
now.    Eh?'' 

Sali  became  thoughtful. 

^'How  old  are  you,  Vreni?"  he  asked.  "I  should 
think  you  must  be  about  seventeen?" 

"I  am  seventeen  and  a  half,"  answered  she.  "And 
you?" 

"Guess!" 

"Oh,  I  know,  you  are  going  on  twenty." 

"How  do  you  know?"  he  asked. 

"I  won't  tell  you,"  she  laughed. 

"Won't  tell  me?" 

"No,  no,"  and  she  giggled  merrily. 

"But  I  want  to  know." 

"Will  you  compel  me?" 

"We'll  see  about  that." 

These  silly  remarks  Sali  made  because  he  wanted 
to  keep  his  hands  busy  and  to  have  a  pretext  for  the 
awkward  caresses  he  attempted  and  which  his  love 
for  the  beautiful  girl  hungered  for.  But  she  continued 
the  childish  dialogue  willingly  enough  for  some  time 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    257 

longer,  showing  plenty  of  patience  the  while,  feeling 
instinctively  her  lover's  mood.  And  the  simple  sallies 
on  both  sides  seemed  to  them  the  height  of  wisdom, 
so  soft  and  sweet  and  full  of  their  mutual  feelings  they 
were.  At  last,  however,  Sali  waxed  bold  and  aggres- 
sive, and  seized  Vreni  and  pressed  her  down  into  the 
scarlet  bed  of  poppies  by  main  strength.  There  she 
lay  panting,  blinking  at  the  sun  with  eyes  half-closed. 
Her  softly  rounded  cheeks  glowed  like  ripe  apples 
and  her  mouth  was  breathing  hard  so  that  the  snow- 
white  rows  of  teeth  became  visible.  Daintily  as  if 
penciled  her  eyebrows  were  defined  above  those  flash- 
ing eyes,  and  her  young  bosom  rose  and  fell  under  the 
working  four  hands  which  mutually  caressed  and 
fought  each  other.  Sali  was  beyond  himself  with 
delight,  seeing  this  wonderful  young  creature  before 
him,  knowing  her  to  be  his  own,  and  he  deemed  him- 
self wealthier  than  a  monarch. 

"I  see  you  still  h^ve  all  your  teeth,"  he  said.  "Do 
you  recall  how  often  we  tried  to  count  them?  Do 
you  now  know  how  to  count? '' 

"Oh,  you  silly,''  smilingly  rejoined  Vreni,  "these 
are  not  the  same.    Those  I  lost  long  ago." 

So  Sali  in  the  simplicity  of  his  soul  wanted  to  renew 
the  game,  and  prepared  to  count  them  over  once  more. 
But  Vreni  abruptly  rose  and  closed  her  mouth.  Then 
she  began  to  form  a  wreath  of  poppies  and  to  place  it 
on  her  head.  The  wreath  was  broad  and  long,  and  on 
the  brow  of  the  nut-brown  maid  it  was  an  ornament  so 


258  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

bewitching  as  to  lend  her  an  enchanting  air.  Sali  held 
in  his  arms  what  rich  people  would  have  dearly  paid 
for  if  merely  they  had  had  it  painted  on  their  walls. 

But  at  last  she  sprang  up.  "Goodness,  how  hot 
it  is  here!  Here  we  remain  like  ninnies  and  allow 
ourselves  to  be  roasted  alive.  Come,  dear,  and  let 
us  sit  among  the  cornr* 

And  they  got  up  and  looked  for  a  suitable  hiding- 
place  among  the  tall  wheat.  When  they  had  found  it, 
they  slipped  into  the  furrows  of  the  field  so  that  nobody 
would  have  discovered  them  without  regular  search, 
leaving  no  trace  behind,  and  they  built  for  themselves 
a  narrow  nest  among  the  golden  ears  that  topped  their 
heads  when  they  were  seated,  so  that  they  only  saw 
the  deep  azure  of  the  sky  above  and  nothing  else  in  the 
world.  They  clung  to  each  other  tightly,  and  show- 
ered kisses  on  cheeks  and  hair  and  mouth,  until  at 
last  they  desisted  from  sheer  exhaustion,  or  whatever 
one  wishes  to  call  it  when  the  caresses  of  two  lovers 
for  one  or  two  minutes  cease  and  thus,  right  in  the 
ecstasy  of  the  blossom  tide  of  life,  there  is  the  hint  of 
the  perishableness  of  everything  mundane.  They 
heard  the  larks  singing  high  overhead,  and  sought 
them  with  their  sharp  young  eyes,  and  when  they 
thought  they  saw  one  flashing  along  in  the  sunlight 
like  shooting  stars  along  the  firmament,  they  kissed 
again,  in  token  of  reward,  and  tried  to  cheat  and  to 
overreach  each  other  at  this  game  just  as  much  as 
they  could. 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    259 

"Do  you  see,  there  is  one  flitting  now,"  whispered 
Sali,  and  Vreni  replied  just  as  low:  "I  can  hear  it, 
but  I  do  not  see  it." 

"Oh,  but  watch  now,"  breathed  Sali,  "right  there, 
where  the  small  white  cloud  is  floating,  a  hand's 
breadth  to  the  right." 

And  then  both  stared  with  all  their  might,  and  mean- 
while opened  their  lips,  thirsty  and  hungry  for  more 
nourishment,  like  young  birds  in  their  nest,  in  order 
to  fasten  these  same  lips  upon  the  other  if  perchance 
they  both  felt  convinced  of  the  existence  of  that  lark. 

But  now  Vreni  made  a  stop,  in  order  to  say,  very 
seriously  and  importantly:  "Let  us  not^ forget;  this, 
then,  is  agreed,  that  each  of  us  loves  the  other.  Now, 
I  wish  to  know,  what  do  you  have  to  say  about  your 
sweetheart?" 

"This,"  said  Sali,  as  though  in  a  dream,  "that  it  is 
a  thing  of  beauty,  with  two  brown  eyes,  a  scarlet 
mouth,  and  with  two  swift  feet.  But  how  it  really 
is  thinking  and  believing  I  have  no  more  idea  than  the 
Pope  in  Rome.  And  what  can  you  tell  me  about 
your  lover?     What  is  he  like?" 

"That  he  has  two  blue  eyes,  a  bold  mouth  and  two 
stout  arms  which  he  is  swift  to  use.  But  what  his 
thoughts  are  I  know  no  more  than  the  Turkish  sultan." 

"True,"  said  Sali,  "it  is  singular,  but  we  really  do 
not  know  what  either  is  thinking.  We  are  less  ac- 
quainted than  if  we  had  never  seen  each  other  before. 
So  strange  towards  each  other  the  long  time  between 


26o  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

has  made  us.  What  really  has  happened  during  the 
long  interval  since  we  grew  up  in  your  dear  little 
head,  Vreni?'^ 

"Not  much,"  whispered  Vreni,  "a  thousand  foolish 
things,  but  my  life  has  been  so  hard  that  none  of  them 
could  stay  there  long." 

"You  poor  little  dear,"  said  Sali  in  a  very  low  voice, 
"but  nevertheless,  Vreni,  I  believe  you  are  a  sly  little 
thing,  are  you  not?" 

"That  you  may  learn,  by  and  by,  if  you  really 
are  fond  of  me,  as  you  say,"  the  young  girl  murmured. 

"You  mean  when  you  are  my  wife,"  whispered 
Sali. 

At  these  last  words  Vreni  trembled  slightly,  and 
pressed  herself  more  tightly  into  his  arms,  kissing  him 
anew  long  and  tenderly.  Tears  gathered  in  her  eyes, 
and  both  of  them  all  at  once  became  sad,  since  their 
future,  so  devoid  of  hope,  came  into  their  minds,  and 
the  enmity  of  their  fathers. 

Vreni  now  sighed  deeply  and  murmured:  "Come, 
Sali,  I  must  be  going  now." 

And  both  rose  and  left  the  cornfield  hand  in  hand, 
but  at  the  same  instant  they  spied  Vreni's  father. 
With  the  idle  curiosity  of  the  person  without  useful 
employment  he  had  been  speculating,  from  the  mo- 
ment he  had  met  Sali  hours  before,  what  the  young 
man  might  be  wanting  all  alone  in  the  village.  Re- 
membering the  occurrence  of  the  previous  day,  he 
finally,   strolling  slowly  towards  the  town,   had  hit 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    261 

upon  the  right  cause,  merely  as  the  result  of  venom 
and  suspicion.  And  no  sooner  had  his  suspicion 
taken  on  a  definite  shape,  when  he,  in  the  middle  of 
a  Seldwyla  street,  turned  back  and  reached  the  village. 
There  he  had  vainly  searched  for  Vreni  everywhere, 
at  home  and  in  the  meadow  and  all  around  in  the 
hedges.  With  increasing  restlessness  he  had  now 
sought  her  right  near  by  in  the  cornfield,  and  when 
picking  up  there  Vreni^s  small  vegetable  basket,  he  had 
felt  sure  of  being  on  the  right  track,  spying  about, 
when  suddenly  he  perceived  the  two  children  issuing 
from  the  corn  itself. 

They  stood  there  as  if  turned  to  stone.  Marti 
himself  also  for  a  moment  did  not  move,  and  stared 
at  them  with  evil  looks,  pale  as  lead.  But  then  he 
started  to  curse  them  like  a  fiend,  and  used  the  vilest 
language  toward  the  young  man.  He  made  a  vicious 
grab  at  him,  attempting  to  throttle  him.  Sali  in- 
stantly wrested  himself  loose,  and  sprang  back  a  few 
paces,  so  as  to  be  out  of  the  reach  of  the  old  man,  who 
acted  like  one  demented.  But  when  he  perceived 
that  Marti  instead  of  himself  now  took  hold  of  the 
trembling  girl,  dealing  her  a  violent  blow  in  the  face, 
then  seizing  her  by  the  back  of  her  hair,  trying  to 
drag  her  along  and  mistreat  her  further,  he  stepped  up 
once  more.  Without  reflecting  at  all  he  picked  up  a 
rock  and  struck  the  old  man  with  it  against  the  side 
of  the  head,  half  in  fear  of  what  the  maniac  meant 
to  do  to  Vreni,  and  half  in  self-defense.    Marti  after 


262  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

the  blow  stumbled  a  step  or  two,  and  then  fell  in  a 
heap  on  a  pile  of  stones,  pulling  his  daughter  down 
with  him  in  so  doing.  Sali  freed  her  hair  from  the 
rough  grasp  of  the  unconscious  man,  and  helped  the 
girl  to  her  feet.  But  then  he  stood  lifeless,  not  know- 
ing what  to  say  or  do. 

The  girl  seeing  her  father  lying  prone  on  the  ground 
like  dead,  put  her  hands  to  her  face,  shuddered  and 
whispered:    ^'Have  you  killed  him?" 

Sali  silently  nodded  his  head,  and  Vreni  shrieked: 
"Oh,  God,  oh,  God!  It  is  my  father!  The  poor 
man!" 

And  quite  out  of  her  senses  she  knelt  down  along- 
side of  him,  lifted  up  his  head  and  began  to  examine 
his  hurt.  But  there  was  no  flow  of  blood,  nor  any 
other  trace  of  injury.  She  let  the  limp  body  drop 
to  the  ground  again.  Sali  put  himself  on  the  other 
side  of  the  unconscious  old  man,  and  both  of  them 
stared  helplessly  at  the  pale  and  motionless  face  of 
Marti.     They  were  silent  and  their  hands  dropped. 

At  last  Sali  remarked:  "Perhaps  he  is  not  dead  at 
all.  I  don't  think  he  is  dead.  That  blow  can  never 
have  killed  him." 

Vreni  tore  a  leaf  off  one  of  the  wild  roses  near  her, 
and  held  it  before  the  mouth  of  her  father.  The  leaf 
fluttered  a  little. 

"He  is  still  alive,"  she  cried,  "Run  to  the  village, 
Sali,  and  get  assistance." 

When  Sali   sprang  up  and  was  about  to  run  off, 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    263 

she  stretched  out  her  hand  towards  him,  and  cried: 
"Don't  come  back  with  the  others  and  say  nothing 
as  to  how  he  came  by  his  injury.  I  shall  keep  silent 
and  betray  nothing." 

In  saying  which  the  poor  girl  showed  him  a  face 
streaming  with  tears  of  distress,  and  she  looked  at  her 
lover  as  though  parting  from  him  forever. 

"Come  and  kiss  me  once  more,"  she  murmured. 
*'But  no,  get  along  with  you.  Everything  is  over 
between  us.  We  can  never  belong  to  each  other." 
And  she  gave  him  a  gentle  push,  and  he  ran  with  a 
heavy  heart  down  the  path  to  the  village. 

On  his  way  he  met  a  small  boy,  one  he  did  not 
know,  and  him  he  bade  to  get  some  people  and  de- 
scribed in  detail  where  and  what  assistance  was  re- 
quired. Then  he  drifted  off  in  despair,  wandering 
at  random  all  night  about  the  woods  near  the  village. 

In  the  early  morning  he  cautiously  crept  forth,  in 
order  to  spy  out  how  things  had  gone  during  the 
night.  From  several  persons  early  astir  he  heard 
the  news.  Marti  was  ahve,  but  out  of  his  senses, 
and  nobody,  it  seemed,  knew  what  really  had  hap- 
pened to  him.  And  only  after  learning  this  his  mind 
was  so  far  at  ease  that  he  found  the  way  back  to  town 
and  to  his  father's  tavern,  where  he  buried  himself 
in  the  family  misery. 

Vreni  had  kept  her  word.  Nothing  could  be  learned 
of  her  but  that  she  had  found  her  father  in  this  con- 


264  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

dition,  and  as  he  on  the  next  day  became  again  quite 
active,  breathed  normally  and  began  to  move  about, 
although  still  without  his  full  senses,  and  since,  besides, 
there  was  no  one  to  frame  a  complaint,  it  was  assumed 
that  he  had  met  with  some  accident  while  under  the 
influence  of  drink,  probably  had  had  a  bad  fall  on  the 
stones,  and  matters  were  left  as  they  were. 

Vreni  nursed  him  very  carefully,  never  left  his 
side,  except  to  get  medicine  and  remedies  from  the 
shop  of  the  village  doctor,  and  also  to  pick  in  the 
vegetable  patch  something  wherewith  to  cook  him 
and  herself  a  simple  stew  or  soup.  Those  days  she 
lived  almost  on  air,  although  she  had  to  be  about 
and  busy  day  and  night  and  nobody  came  to  help  her. 
Thus  nearly  six  weeks  elapsed  until  the  old  man  re- 
covered sufficiently  to  take  care  of  himself,  though 
long  before  that  he  had  been  sitting  up  in  bed  and  had 
babbled  about  one  thing  or  another.  But  he  had  not 
recovered  his  mind,  and  the  things  he  was  now  saying 
and  doing  seemed  to  show  plainly  that  he  had  become 
weak-minded,  and  this  in  the  strangest  manner.  He 
could  recall  what  had  happened  but  darkly,  and  to 
him  it  seemed  something  very  enjoyable  and  laugh- 
able. Something,  too,  which  did  not  touch  him  in  any 
way,  and  he  laughed  and  laughed  all  day  long,  and 
was  in  the  best  of  humor,  very  different  from  what  he 
had  been  before  his  accident.  While  still  abed  he 
had  a  hundred  foolish,  senseless  ideas,  cut  capers  and 
made  faces,  pulled  his  black  peaked  woollen  cap  over 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    265 

his  ears,  down  to  his  nose  and  his  mouth,  and  then  he 
would  mumble  something  which  seemed  to  amuse 
him  highly.  Vreni,  pale  and  sorrowful,  listened 
patiently  to  all  his  stories,  shedding  tears  about  his 
idiotic  behavior,  which  grieved  her  even  more  than 
his  former  malicious  and  wicked  tricks  had.  But  it 
would  nevertheless  happen  now  and  then,  that  the 
old  man  would  perform  some  particularly  ludicrous 
antics,  and  then  Vreni,  tortured  as  she  was  by  all 
these  scenes,  would  be  unable  to  help  bursting  into 
laughter,  as  her  joyous  disposition,  suppressed  by  all 
these  sad  events,  would  sometimes  rend  the  bounds 
which  confined  her,  just  like  a  bow  too  tightly  strung 
that  would  break. 

But  as  soon  as  the  old  man  could  once  more  get  out 
of  bed,  there  was  nothing  more  to  be  done.  All  day 
long  he  did  nothing  but  silly  things,  was  grinning, 
smirking  and  laughing  to  himself  constantly,  turned 
everything  in  the  house  topsy-turvy,  sat  down  in  the 
sunshine  and  blared  at  the  world,  put  out  his  tongue 
at  everybody  that  passed,  and  made  long  monologues 
while  standing  in  the  midst  of  the  bean  field.        _^.--' — 

Simultaneous  with  all  this  there  came  also  the  j''^.< 
end  of  his  ownership  in  the  farm.  Everything  upon 
it  had,  of  course,  gone  to  wrack  and  ruin,  and  disorder 
reigned  supreme.  Not  only  his  house,  but  also  the 
last  bit  of  land  left  him,  pledged  in  court  some  time 
before,  were  now  seized  and  the  day  of  forced  sale 
was  named.     For  the  peasant  who  had  claims  to  these 


266  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

pieces  of  property,  very  naturally  made  use  of  the 
opportunities  now  afforded  him  by  the  illness  and  the 
failing  powers  of  Marti  to  bring  about  a  quick  decision. 
These  last  proceedings  in  court  used  up  the  bit  of  cash 
still  left  to  Marti,  and  all  this  was  done  while  he  in  his 
weakness  of  mind  had  not  even  a  notion  what  it  was 
all  about. 

The  forced  sale  took  place,  and  at  its  close,  Marti 
being  penniless  and  bereft  of  sense,  by  the  action  of  the 
village  council,  it  was  decided  to  make  him  an  inmate 
of  the  community  asylum  that  had  been  founded  many 
years  before  for  the  precise  benefit  of  just  such  poor 
devils  as  himself.  This  asylum  was  located  in  the 
cantonal  capital.  Before  he  started  for  his  desti- 
nation he  was  well  fed  for  a  day  or  two,  to  the  eminent 
satisfaction  of  the  idiot,  who  had  developed  an  enor- 
mous appetite  of  late,  and  then  was  put  on  a  cart 
drawn  by  a  phlegmatic  ox  and  driven  by  a  poor  peasant 
who  besides  attending  to  this  community  errand 
wanted  to  sell  also  a  sack  of  potatoes  at  the  town. 
Vreni  sat  down  on  the  same  vehicle  alongside  of  her 
father  in  order  to  accompany  him  on  this  day  of  his 
being  buried  alive,  so  to  speak. 

It  was  a  sad  and  bitter  drive,  but  Vreni  watched 
lovingly  over  her  father,  and  let  him  want  for  nothing; 
neither  did  she  grow  impatient  when  passers-by, 
attracted  by  the  ridiculous  behavior  of  the  old  man, 
would  follow  the  cart  and  make  all  sorts  of  audible 
remarks  on  its  inmates.     Finally  they  did  reach  the 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    267 

asylum,  a  complex  of  buildings  connected  by  courts 
and  corridors,  and  where  a  big  garden  was  seen  alive 
with  similarly  unfortunate  beings  as  Marti  himself, 
all  dressed  in  a  sort  of  uniform  consisting  of  white 
coarse  linen  blouses  and  vests,  with  stiff  caps  of  leather 
on  their  foolish  old  heads.  Marti,  too,  was  put  into 
such  a  uniform,  even  before  Vreni's  departure,  and 
her  father  evinced  a  childish  joy  at  his  new  clothes, 
dancing  about  in  them  and  singing  snatches  of  wicked 
drinking  songs. 

"God  be  with  you,  my  lords  and  honored  fellow- 
inmates,"  he  harangued  a  knot  of  them,  *'you  surely 
have  a  palace-like  home  here.  Go  away,  Vreni, 
and  tell  mother  that  I  won't  come  home  any  more. 
I  like  it  here  splendidly.  Goodness  me,  what  a  palace! 
There  runs  a  spider  across  the  road,  and  I  have  heard 
him  barking!  Oh,  maiden  mine,  oh,  maiden  mine, 
don't  kiss  the  old,  kiss  but  the  young!  All  the  waters 
in  the  world  are  running  into  the  Rhine!  She  with 
the  darkest  eye.  she  is  not  mine.  Already  going, 
little  Vreni?  Why,  thou  lookest  as  though  death 
were  in  thy  pot.  And  yet  things  are  looking  up  with 
me.  I  am  doing  fine.  Am  getting  wealthy  in  my  old 
days.  The  she-fox  cries  with  him:  Halloo!  Halloo! 
Her  heart  pains  her.  Why  —  oh,  why?  Halloo! 
Halloo!" 

An  official  of  the  institution  bade  him  hold  his 
infernal  noise,  and  then  he  led  him  away  to  do  some 
easy  work.    Vreni   took  her  leave  sadly  and   then 


268  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

began  to  look  up  her  ox  cart  with  the  peasant.  When 
she  had  found  it  she  climbed  in  and  sat  down  and  ate 
a  slice  of  bread  she  had  brought  with  her.  Then 
she  lay  down  and  fell  asleep,  and  a  couple  of  hours 
later  the  peasant  came  and  woke  her,  and  then  they 
drove  home  to  the  village.  They  arrived  there  in  the 
middle  of  the  night.  Vreni  went  to  her  father's 
house,  the  one  where  she  had  been  born  and  had 
spent  all  her  days.  For  the  first  time  she  was  all 
alone  in  it.  Two  days'  grace  she  had  to  get  out  and 
find  some  other  shelter.  She  made  a  fire  and  pre- 
pared a  cup  of  coffee  for  herself,  using  the  last  rem- 
nants she  still  had.  Then  she  sat  down  on  the  edge 
of  the  hearth,  and  wept  bitterly.  She  was  longing  with 
all  her  soul  to  see  and  talk  once  more  to  Sali,  and  she 
was  thinking  and  thinking  of  him.  But  mingling  with 
these  desires  of  hers  were  her  anxieties  and  her  fears 
of  the  future.  Thus  sat  the  poor  thing,  holding  her 
head  in  her  hand,  when  somebody  entered  at  the  door. 

"Sali!"  cried  Vreni,  when  she  looked  up  and  saw 
the  face  dearest  to  her  in  the  world.  And  she  fell  on 
his  neck,  but  then  they  both  looked  at  one  another, 
and  they  shouted:  "How  poorly  you  look!"  For 
Sali  was  as  pale  and  sorrowful  as  the  girl  herself. 
Forgetting  everything  she  drew  him  to  her  on  the 
hearth,  and  questioned  him:  "Have  you  been  ill,  or 
have  you  also  fared  badly?" 

"No,  not  ill,"  said  Sali,  "but  longing  for  you. 
At  home  things  are  going  fine.     My  father  now  has 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    269 

rare  guests,  and  as  I  believe,  he  has  become  a  receiver 
of  stolen  goods.  And  that  is  why  there  are  big  doings 
at  our  place,  both  day  and  night,  until,  I  suppose, 
there  will  come  a  bad  end  to  it  all.  Mother  is  helping 
along,  eager  to  have  guests  of  any  kind  at  all,  guests 
that  fetch  money  into  the  house,  and  she  tries  to  bring 
some  order  out  of  all  this  disorder,  and  also  to  make 
it  profitable.  I  am  not  questioned  about  the  matter 
at  all,  neither  do  I  care.  For  I  have  only  been  think- 
ing of  you  all  along.  Since  all  sorts  of  vagrants  come 
and  go  in  our  place,  we  have  heard  of  everything 
concerning  you,  and  my  father  is  beside  himself  with 
joy,  and  that  your  father  has  been  taken  to-day  to  the 
asylum  has  delighted  him  immensely.  Since  he  has 
now  left  you  I  have  come,  thinking  you  might  be 
lonesome,  and  maybe  in  trouble." 

Then  Vreni  told  him  all  her  sorrows  in  detail,  but 
she  did  this  with  such  fluency  and  described  the 
intimate  details  in  such  an  almost  happy  tone  of  voice 
as  if  v/hat  she  was  saying  did  not  disturb  her  in  the 
least.  All  this  because  the  presence  of  her  lover  and 
his  solicitude  about  her  really  rendered  her  happy  and 
minimized  her  anxieties.  She  had  Sali  at  her  side. 
And  what  more  did  she  want?  Soon  she  had  a  vessel 
with  the  steaming  coffee  which  she  forced  Sali  to  share 
with  her. 

**Day  after  to-morrow,  then,  you  must  leave  here?" 
said  Sali.     *'What  is  to  become  of  you  now?'' 

"I  don't  know,"   answered  Vreni.    "I  suppose  I 


270  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

shall  have  to  seek  some  service  and  go  away  from  here, 
somewhere  in  the  wide  world.  But  I  know  I  won't 
be  able  to  endure  that  without  you,  Sah,  and  yet  we 
cannot  come  together.  If  there  were  no  other  reason 
it  would  not  do  because  you  hurt  my  father  and 
made  him  lose  his  mind.  That  would  always  be  a  bad 
foundation  for  our  wedded  state,  would  it  not?  And 
neither  of  us  would  ever  be  able  to  forget  that,  never  I" 

Sali  sighed  deeply,  and  rejoined:  ''I  myself  wanted 
a  hundred  times  to  become  a  soldier  or  else  go  far 
away  and  hire  out  on  a  farm,  but  I  cannot  do  it, 
I  cannot  leave  you  here,  and  after  we  are  separated 
it  will  kill  me,  I  feel  sure  of  it,  for  longing  for  you 
will  not  let  me  rest  day  or  night.  I  really  believe, 
Vreni,  that  all  this  misery  makes  my  love  for  you 
only  the  stronger  and  the  more  painful,  so  that  it 
becomes  a  matter  of  life  or  death.  Never  did  I  dream 
that  this  should  ever  be  my  end.'' 

But  Vreni,  while  he  was  thus  pouring  out  his  bur- 
dened mind,  gazed  at  him  smilingly  and  with  a  face 
that  shone  with  joy.  They  were  leaning  against  the 
chimney  corner,  and  silently  they  felt  to  the  full  the 
intense  ecstasy  of  communion  of  spirits.  Over  and 
above  all  their  troubles,  high  above  them  all,  there 
was  hovering  the  genius  of  their  love,  that  each  felt 
loving  and  beloved.  And  in  this  beatitude  they 
both  fell  asleep  on  this  cold  hearth  with  its  feathery 
ashes,  without  cover  or  pillow,  and  slept  just  as  peace- 
fully and  softly  as  two  little  children  in  their  cradle. 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    271 

Dawn  was  breaking  in  the  eastern  sky  when  Sali 
awoke  the  first.  Gently  he  woke  Vreni,  but  she 
again  and  again  snuggled  near  to  him  and  would  not 
rouse  herself.  At  last  he  kissed  her  with  vehemence 
on  her  mouth,  and  then  Vreni  did  awaken,  opened  her 
eyes  wide,  and  when  she  saw  Sali  she  exclaimed: 
''Zounds,  IVe  just  been  dreaming  of  you.  I  was 
dreaming  I  danced  on  our  wedding-day,  many,  many 
hours,  and  we  were  both  so  happy,  both  so  finely 
dressed,  and  nothing  was  lacking  to  our  joy.  And 
then  we  wanted  to  kiss  each  other,  and  we  both  longed 
for  it,  oh,  so  much,  but  always  something  was  dragging 
us  apart,  and  now  it  appears  that  it  was  you  yourself 
that  was  interfering,  that  it  was  you  who  disturbed 
and  hindered  us.  But  how  nice,  how  nice,  that  you 
are  at  least  close  by  now.'' 

And  she  fell  around  his  neck  and  kissed  him  wildly, 
kissed  him  as  if  there  were  to  be  no  end  to  it. 

"And  now  confess,  my  dear,  what  have  you  been 
dreaming?"  and  she  tenderly  caressed  his  cheeks  and 
chin. 

"I  was  dreaming,"  he  said,  "that  I  was  walking 
endlessly  along  a  lengthy  street,  and  through  a  forest, 
and  you  in  the  distance  always  ahead  of  me.  Off 
and  on  you  turned  around  for  me,  and  were  beckoning 
and  smiling  at  me,  and  then  it  seemed  to  me  I  were  in 
heaven.    And  that  is  all." 

They  stepped  on  the  threshold  of  the  kitchen  door 
left  open  the  whole  night  and  which  led  direct  into  the 


272  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

open,  and  they  had  to  laugh  as  they  now  saw  each 
other  plainly.  For  the  right  cheek  of  Vreni  and  the 
left  one  of  Sali,  which  in  their  sleep  had  been  resting 
against  each  other,  were  both  quite  red  from  the 
pressure,  while  the  pallor  of  the  opposite  cheeks  was 
engrossed  by  the  coolth  of  early  morning.  So  then 
they  rubbed  vigorously  the  pale  cheeks  to  bring  them 
into  consonance  with  the  others,  each  performing  that 
service  for  the  other.  The  fresh  morning  air,  the 
dewy  peace  lying  over  the  whole  landscape,  and 
the  ruddy  tints  of  coming  sunrise,  all  this  together 
made  them  forget  their  griefs  and  made  them  merry 
and  playful,  and  into  Vreni  especially  a  gay  spirit  of 
carelessness  seemed  to  have  passed. 

"To-morrow  night  then,  I  must  leave  this  house,'* 
she  said,  "and  find  some  other  shelter.  But  before 
that  happens  I  should  love  to  be  merry,  real  merry, 
;  just  once,  only  once.  And  it  is  with  thee,  dear,  that 
'  I  want  to  enjoy  myself.  I  should  like  to  dance  with 
you,  really  and  truly,  for  a  long,  long  time,  till  I  could 
no  longer  move  a  foot.  For  it  is  that  dance  in  my 
dream  that  I  have  to  think  of  steadily.  That  dream 
was  too  fine,  let  us  realize  it." 

"At  all  events  I  must  be  present  when  you  dance," 
said  Sali,  "and  see  what  becomes  of  you,  and  to  dance 
with  you  as  long  as  you  like  is  just  what  I  myself 
would  love  to  do,  you  charming  wild  thing.  But 
where?" 

"Ah,  Sali,  to-morrow  there  will  be  kermess  in  a 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    273 

number  of  places  near  by.  Of  two  of  these  I  know. 
On  such  occasions  we  should  not  be  spied  upon  and 
could  enjoy  ourselves  to  our  heart's  content.  Below 
at  the  river  front  I  could  await  you,  and  then  we  can 
go  wherever  we  like,  to  laugh  and  be  merry  —  just 
once,  only  once.  But  stop  —  we  have  no  money." 
And  Vreni's  face  clouded  with  the  sad  thought,  and 
she  added  blankly:  "What  a  pity!  Nothing  can 
come  of  it." 

"Let  be,"  smilingly  said  Sali,  "I  shall  have  money 
enough  when  I  meet  you." 

But  Vreni  flushed  and  said  haltingly:  "But  how  — 
not  from  your  father,  not  stolen  money?" 

"No,  Vreni.  I  still  have  my  silver  watch,  and  I 
will  sell  that." 

"Then  that  is  arranged,"  said  Vreni,  and  she  flushed 
once  more.  "In  fact,  I  think  I  should  die  if  I  could 
not  dance  with  you  to-morrow." 

"Probably  the  best  for  us,"  said  Sali,  "if  we  both 
could  die." 

They  embraced  with  tearful  smiles,  and  bade  each 
other  good-by,  but  at  the  moment  of  parting  they 
again  laughed  at  each  other,  in  the  sure  hope  of  meet- 
ing again  next  day. 

"But  when  shall  we  meet?"  asked  Vreni. 

"At  eleven  at  latest,"  answered  Sali.  "Then  we 
can  eat  a  good  noon  meal  together  somewhere," 

"Fine,  fine,"  Vreni  cried  after  him,  "come  half  an 
hour  earlier  then." 


274  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

But  the  very  moment  of  their  parting  Vreni  sum- 
moned him  back  once  more,  and  she  showed  suddenly 
a  wholly  changed  and  despairing  face:  *' Nothing, 
after  all,  can  come  of  our  plans,"  she  then  said,  weep- 
ing hard,  "because  I  had  forgotten  I  had  no  Sunday 
shoes  any  more.  Even  yesterday  I  had  to  put  on 
these  clumsy  ones  going  to  town,  and  I  don't  know 
where  to  find  a  pair  I  could  wear." 

Sali  stood  undecided  and  amazed. 

"No  shoes?"  he  repeated  after  her.  "In  that  case 
you'll  have  to  go  in  these." 

"But  no,  no,"  she  remonstrated.  "In  these  I  should 
never  be  able  to  dance." 

"Well,  all  we  can  do  then  is  to  buy  new  ones," 
said  Sali  in  a  matter-of-fact  tone. 

"Where  and  what  with?"  asked  Vreni. 

"Why,  in  Seldwyla,  where  they  have  shoe  stores 
enough.  And  money  I  shall  have  in  less  than  two 
hours." 

"But,  Sali,  I  cannot  accompany  you  to  all  these 
shoe  stores,  and  then  there  will  not  be  money  enough 
for  all  the  other  things  as  well." 

"It  must.  And  I  will  buy  the  shoes  for  you  and 
bring  them  along  to-morrow." 

"Oh,  but,  you  silly,  they  would  not  fit  me." 

"Then  give  me  an  old  shoe  of  yours  to  take  along, 
or,  stop,  better  still,  I  will  take  your  measure.  Surely 
that  will  not  be  very  difficult." 

"Take  my  measure,  of  course.  I  never  thought  of 
that.     Come,  come,  I  will  find  you  a  bit  of  tape." 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    275 

Then  she  sat  down  once  more  on  the  hearth,  turned 
her  skirt  somewhat  up  and  slipped  her  shoe  off,  and 
the  little  foot  showed,  from  yesterday's  excursion  to 
town,  yet  covered  with  a  white  stocking.  Sali  knelt 
down,  and  then  took,  as  well  as  he  was  able,  the  meas- 
ure, using  the  tape  daintily  in  encompassing  the 
length  and  width  with  great  care,  and  tying  knots 
where  wanted. 

"You  shoemaker,"  said  Vreni,  bending  down  to  him 
and  laughingly  flushing  in  embarrassment.  But  Sali 
also  reddened,  and  he  held  the  little  foot  firmly  in 
the  palm  of  his  hand,  really  longer  than  was  necessary, 
so  that  Vreni  at  last,  blushing  still  a  deeper  red,  with- 
drew it,  embracing,  however,  Sali  once  more  stormily 
and  kissing  him  with  ardor,  but  then  telling  him 
hastily  to  go. 

As  soon  as  Sali  arrived  in  town  he  took  his  watch 
to  a  jeweler  and  received  six  or  seven  florins  for  it. 
For  his  silver  watch  chain  he  also  got  some  money, 
and  now  he  thought  himself  rich  as  Croesus,  for  since 
he  had  grown  up  he  had  never  had  as  large  a  sum  at 
once.  If  only  the  day  were  over,  he  was  saying  to 
himself,  and  Sunday  come,  so  that  he  could  purchase 
with  his  riches  all  the  happiness  which  Vreni  and  hial^  ^^ 
s^If^ere  dreaming  of.  For  though  the  awful  day  after  ^^^f^'^^^ 
seemed  to  loom  darker  and  darker  in  comparison,  the 
heavenly  pleasures  anticipated  for  Sunday  shone  with 
all  the  greater  lustre.  However,  some  of  his  remain- 
ing leisure    time    was    spent    agreeably  by    him  in 


276  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

choosing  the  desired  pair  of  shoes  for  Vreni.  In  fact 
this  job  to  him  was  a  most  joyous  diversion.  He 
went  from  one  shoestore  to  another,  had  them  show 
him  all  the  women's  footwear  they  had  in  stock,  and 
finally  bought  the  prettiest  pair  he  could  find.  They 
were  of  a  finer  quality  and  more  ornate  than  any 
Vreni  had  ever  owned.  He  hid  them  under  his  vest, 
and  throughout  the  rest  of  the  day  did  not  leave  them 
out  of  his  sight;  he  even  put  them  under  his  pillow 
at  night  when  he  went  to  bed.  Since  he  had  seen  the 
girl  that  day  and  was  to  meet  her  again  next  day, 
he  slept  soundly  and  well,  but  was  up  early,  and  then 
began  to  pick  out  his  Sunday  finery,  dressing  with 
greater  care  than  ever  before  in  his  Hfe.  When  he  was 
done  he  looked  with  satisfaction  at  his  own  image  in 
his  little  broken  mirror.  And  indeed  it  presented  an 
enticing  picture  of  youth  and  good  looks.  His  mother 
was  astonished  when  she  saw  him  thus  attired  as  though 
for  his  wedding,  and  she  asked  him  the  meaning 
of  it.  The  son  replied,  with  a  mien  of  indifference, 
that  he  wanted  to  take  a  long  stroll  into  the  country, 
adding  that  he  felt  the  effects  of  his  constant  confine- 
ment in  the  close  house. 

"Queer  doings,  all  the  time,''  grumbled  his  father 
with  ill-humor,  "and  forever  skirmishing  about." 

"Let  him  have  his  way,"  said  the  mother.  "Per- 
haps a  change  of  air  and  surroundings  will  do  him  good. 
I'm  sure  to  look  at  him  he  needs  it.  He  is  as  pale  as 
a  ghost." 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    277 

"Have  you  some  money  to  spend  for  your  outing?" 
now  asked  his  father.    "Where  did  you  get  it  from?" 

"I  don't  need  any,"  said  Sali. 

"There  is  a  florin  for  you,"  replied  the  old  man, 
and  threw  him  the  coin.  "You  can  turn  in  at  the 
village  and  visit  the  tavern,  so  that  they  don't  think 
we're  so  badly  off." 

"I  don't  intend  to  go  to  the  village,  and  I  have  no 
use  for  the  money.  You  may  keep  it,"  replied  Sali, 
with  a  show  of  indignation. 

"Well,  you've  had  it,  at  any  rate,  and  so  I'll  keep 
the  money,  you  ill-conditioned  fellow,"  muttered  the 
father,  and  put  the  coin  back  in  his  pocket. 

But  his  wife  who  for  some  reason  unknown  to  herself 
felt  that  day  particularly  distressed  on  account  of  her 
son,  brought  down  for  him  a  large  handkerchief  of 
Milan  silk,  with  scarlet  edges,  which  she  herself  had 
worn  a  few  odd  times  before  and  of  which  she  knew 
that  he  liked  it.  He  wound  it  about  his  neck,  and 
left  the  long  ends  of  it  dangling.  And  the  flaps  of 
his  shirt  collar,  usually  worn  by  him  turned  down,  he 
this  time  let  stand  on  end,  in  a  fit  of  rustic  coquetry, 
so  that  he  offered  altogether  the  appearance  of  a  well- 
to-do  young  man.  Then  at  last,  Vreni's  little  shoes 
hid  below  his  vest,  he  left  the  house  at  near  seven  in 
the  morning.  In  leaving  the  room  a  singularly  power- 
ful sentiment  urged  him  to  shake  hands  once  more 
with  his  parents,  and  having  reached  the  street,  he  was 
impelled  to  turn  and  take  a  last  glance  at  the  house. 


278  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

"I  almost  believe/'  said  Manz  sententiously,  ''that 
the  young  fool  is  smitten  with  some  woman.  Nothing 
but  that  would  be  lacking  in  our  present  circumstances 
indeed. '* 

And  the  mother  replied:  "Would  to  God  it  were  so. 
Perhaps  the  poor  fellow  might  yet  be  happy  in  life.'' 

''Just  so,"  growled  the  father.  "That's  it.  What 
a  heavenly  lot  you  are  picking  for  him.  To  fall  in 
love  and  to  have  to  take  care  of  some  penniless  woman 
—  yes  indeed,  that  would  be  a  great  thing  for  him, 
would  it  not?" 

But  Mother  Manz  only  smiled  slightly,  and  said 
never  another  word. 

Sali  at  first  directed  his  steps  toward  the  shore  of 
the  river,  to  that  trysting-place  where  he  was  to  meet 
Vreni.  But  on  the  way  he  changed  his  mind  and 
steered  straight  for  the  village  itself,  hoping  to  meet 
her  there  awaiting  him,  since  the  time  till  noon  other- 
wise seemed  lost  to  him. 

"What  do  we  have  to  care  about  gossips  now?" 
he  said  to  himself.  "And  they  dare  not  say  anything 
against  her  anyway,  nor  am  I  afraid  of  anyone." 

So  he  stepped  into  Vreni's  room  without  any  cere- 
mony, and  to  his  delight  found  her  already  completely 
dressed  and  bedecked,  seated  patiently  on  a  stool, 
and  awaiting  her  lover's  coming.  Nothing  but  the 
shoes  was  lacking. 

But  Sali  stopped  right  in  the  centre  of  the  room 
and  stood  like  one  nailed  to  the  spot,  so  beautiful  and 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    279 

alluring  Vreni  looked  in  her  holiday  attire.  Yet  it 
was  simple  enough.  She  wore  a  plain  skirt  of  blue 
linen,  and  above  that  a  snow-white  muslin  kerchief. 
The  dress  fitted  her  slender  body  wonderfully,  and  the 
brown  hair  with  its  pretty  curls  had  been  well  arranged, 
and  the  usually  obstinate  curls  lay  fine  and  dainty 
about  head  and  neck.  Since  Vreni  had  scarcely 
left  the  house  for  so  many  weeks,  her  complexion  had 
grown  more  delicate  and  almost  transparent;  her 
griefs  also  had  contributed  toward  that  result.  But 
at  that  instant  a  rush  of  sudden  joy  and  love  poured 
over  that  pallor  one  scarlet  layer  after  another,  and 
on  her  bosom  she  wore  a  fine  nosegay  of  roses,  asters 
and  rosemary.  She  was  seated  at  the  window,  and 
was  breathing  still  and  quiet  the  fresh  morning  air 
perfumed  by  the  sun.  But  when  she  saw  SaH  she 
at  once  stretched  out  her  pretty  arms,  bare  from  the 
elbow.  And  with  a  voice  melodious  and  tender  she  ex- 
claimed: "How  nice  of  you  and  how  right  to  come 
already.  But  have  you  really  brought  me  the  shoes?. 
Surely?  Well,  then  I  won't  get  up  until  I  have  them 
on.'' 

Sali  without  further  ado  produced  the  shoes  and 
handed  them  to  the  eager  maiden.  Vreni  instantly 
cast  her  old  ones  aside,  slipped  the  new  ones  on,  and 
indeed,  they  fitted  excellently.  Only  now  she  rose 
quickly  from  her  seat,  dandled  herself  in  the  shoes, 
and  walked  up  and  down  the  room  a  few  times,  to  be 
sure  of  their  fit.    She  pulled  up  a  bit  her  blue  dress 


28o  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

in  order  to  admire  them  the  better,  and  with  extreme 
pleasure  she  examined  the  red  loops  in  front,  while 
Sali  could  not  get  his  fill  of  the  charming  picture  the 
girl  presented  —  the  lovely  excitement  that  beautified 
her  the  more,  the  willowy  shape,  the  gently  heaving 
bosom,  the  delicate  oval  of  the  face  with  its  pretty 
features,  animated  with  feminine  enjoyment  of  the 
moment,  eager  with  the  mere  joy  of  living,  grateful 
to  the  giver  of  this  last  bit  of  finery  that  her  childish 
soul  had  longed  for. 

"You  are  looking  at  my  posy,"  she  said.  "Have 
I  not  managed  to  pick  a  nice  one?  You  must  know 
these  are  the  last  ones  I  have  managed  to  find  in 
this  wasted  place.  But  there  was,  after  all,  still  left 
a  rosebud,  over  at  the  hedge  in  a  sheltered  spot  a  few 
of  them  and  some  other  flowers,  and  the  way  they  are 
now  gathered  up  and  arranged  one  would  never  think 
they  came  from  a  house  decayed  and  fallen.  But  now 
it  is  high  time  for  me  to  leave  here,  for  not  a  single 
flower  is  there,  and  the  whole  house  is  bare." 

Then  only  Sali  noticed  that  all  the  few  movables 
still  left  were  gone. 

"You  poor  little  Vreni,"  he  deplored,  "have  they 
already  taken  everything  from  you?" 

"Yes,"  she  said  with  a  ludicrous  attempt  to  be 
tragic,  "yesterday,  after  you  had  left,  they  came  and 
took  everything  of  mine  away  that  could  be  moved 
at  all,  and  left  me  nothing  but  my  bed.  But  that  I 
have  also  sold  at  once,  and  here  is  the  money  for  it  — 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    281 

see!"  And  she  hauled  forth  from  the  depths  of  an 
inside  pocket  a  handful  of  bright  new  silver  coins. 

"With  this/'  she  continued,  "the  orphan  patron 
said  to  me,  I  was  to  find  another  service  in  town 
somewhere,  and  that  I  was  to  start  out  to-day." 

"Really,"  said  SaH,  after  glancing  about  in  the 
kitchen  and  the  other  rooms,  "there  is  nothing  at  all 
left,  no  furniture,  no  sliver  of  fuel,  no  pot  or  kettle, 
no  knife  or  fork.  And  have  you  had  nothing  to  eat 
this  morning?" 

"Nothing  at  all,"  answered  Vreni,  with  a  happy 
laugh.  "I  might  have  gone  out  and  got  myself 
something  for  breakfast,  but  I  preferred  to  remain 
hungry,  so  I  could  eat  a  lot  with  you,  for  you  cannot 
think  how  much  I  am  going  to  enjoy  my  first  meal 
with  you  —  how  awfully  much  I  am  going  to  eat 
with  you  present.  I  am  almost  dying  with  impatience 
for  it."  And  she  showed  him  a  row  of  pearly  teeth 
and  a  little  red  tongue  to  emphasize  what  she  said. 

Sali  stood  like  one  enchanted. 

"If  I  only  might  touch  you,"  murmured  Sali,  "I 
should  soon  show  you  how  much  I  love  you,  you 
pretty,  pretty  thing." 

"No,  no,  you  are  right,"  quickly  rejoined  Vreni, 
"you  would  ruin  all  my  finery,  and  if  we  also  handle 
my  flowers  with  some  care  my  head  and  hair  will 
profit  from  it,  because  ordinarily  you  disarrange  all 
my  curls." 

"Well,  then,"  grumbled  Sali,  "let  us  go." 


282  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

"Not  quite  yet;  we  must  wait  till  my  bed  has  been 
fetched  away.  For  as  soon  as  that  is  gone  I  am  going 
to  lock  up  the  house,  and  I  am  never  to  return  to  it. 
My  little  bundle  I  am  going  to  give  to  the  woman  to 
keep,  to  the  one  who  has  bought  my  bed." 

So  they  sat  down  together  and  waited  until  the 
woman  showed  up,  a  peasant  woman  of  squat  shape 
and  robust  habit,  one  who  loved  to  talk,  who  had 
a  stout  boy  with  her  that  was  to  carry  the  bedstead. 
When  this  woman  got  sight  of  Vreni's  lover  and  of  the 
girl  herself  in  all  her  finery,  she  opened  mouth  and  eyes 
to  their  fullest,  squared  herself  and  put  her  arms 
akimbo,  shouting:  "Why,  look  only,  you're  starting 
well,  Vreni.  With  a  lover  and  yourself  dressed  up  like 
a  princess." 

" Don't  I?  "  laughed  Vreni,  in  a  friendly  way.  "And 
do  you  know  who  that  is?" 

"I  should  think  so,"  said  the  woman.  "That  is 
Sali  Manz,  or  I  am  much  mistaken.  Mountains  and 
valleys,  they  say,  do  not  meet,  but  people  most  cer- 
tainly do.  But,  child,  let  me  warn  you.  Think 
how  your  parents  have  fared." 

"Ah,  that  is  all  changed  now,"  smilingly  replied 
Vreni.  "Everything  has  been  adjusted,  and  now 
things  are  smoothed  out.  See  here,  Sali  is  my 
promised  husband."  And  the  girl  told  this  bit  of  news 
in  a  manner  almost  condescending,  and  bent  toward 
the  woman  one  of  her  bewitching  glances. 

"Your  promised  husband,  is  he?    Well,  well,  who 


ROlViEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    283 

would  have  thought  it?'^  chattered  the  peasant  woman, 
feeling  highly  honored  at  being  the  recipient  of  this 
interesting  intelligence. 

"Yes,  and  he  is  now  a  wealthy  gentleman,"  went  on 
Vreni,  "for  he  has  just  won  a  hundred  thousand 
dollars  in  the  lottery.    Just  think!" 

The  woman  gave  a  jump  of  surprise,  threw  up  her 
hands,  and  shouted:  "Hund  —  hundred  thousand 
—  Hund— " 

Vreni  repeated  it  with  a  serious  face. 

The  woman  grew  still  more  excited. 

"Hundred  thousand  —  well,  well.  But  you  are 
making  fun  of  me,  child.    Hund  —  Is  it  possible?  " 

"All  right,  as  you  choose,"  went  on  Vreni,  still 
smiling. 

"But  if  it  is  true,  and  he  gets  all  that  money,  what 
are  you  two  going  to  do  with  it?  Are  you  to  become 
a  stylish  lady,  or  what?" 

"Of  course,  within  three  weeks  our  wedding  takes 
place  —  such  a  wedding." 

"Oh,  my  goodness,  is  it  possible?  But  no,  you  are 
telling  me  stories,  I  know." 

"Well,  he  has  already  bought  the  finest  house  in 
Seldwyla,  with  a  fine  vineyard  and  the  biggest  garden 
attached.  And  you  must  come  and  pay  us  a  visit, 
after  we're  there  —  I  count  on  it." 

"Why,  what  a  witch  you  are,"  the  woman  went  on 
between  belief  and  unbelief. 

"You   will   see   how   nice   it  is   there,"   continued 


284  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

Vreni  unabashed.  ^*A  cup  of  coffee  you'll  get,  such 
as  you  never  drank  before,  and  plenty  of  cake  with  it, 
of  butter  and  honey." 

"Oh,  you  lucky  duck!"  shrieked  the  woman,  "de- 
pend upon  my  coming,  of  course."  And  she  made 
an  eager  face,  as  though  she  already  saw  spread  before 
her  all  these  dainties. 

"But  if  you  should  happen  to  come  at  noontime," 
went  on  Vreni  in  her  fanciful  tale,  "and  you  would  be 
tired  from  marketing,  you  shall  have  a  bowl  of  strong 
broth  and  a  bottle  of  our  extra  wine,  the  one  with  the 
blue  seal." 

"That  will  certainly  do  me  good,"  said  the  woman. 

"And  there  shall  be  no  lack  of  some  candy  and 
white  wheaten  rolls,  for  your  little  ones  at  home." 

"I  think  I  can  taste  it  already,"  answered  the 
woman,  and  she  turned  her  eyes  heavenwards. 

"Perhaps  a  pretty  kerchief,  or  the  remnant  of  a 
bolt  of  extra  fine  silk,  or  a  costly  ribbon  or  two  for 
your  skirts,  or  enough  for  an  apron  I  suppose  will  be 
found,  if  we  rummage  in  my  drawers  and  trunks 
together  sometime  when  we  are  talking  things  over." 

The  woman  turned  completely  on  her  heels  and 
shook  her  skirts  with  a  jubilant  yodel. 

"And  in  case  your  husband  could  start  in  the  cattle 
dealing  way,  and  needed  a  bit  of  capital  for  it,  you 
would  know  where  to  apply,  would  you  not?  My 
dear  Sali  will  always  be  glad  to  invest  some  of  his 
superfluous  money  in  such  a  manner.     And  I  myself 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    285 

might  add  a  few  pennies  from  my  savings  to  help 
out  a  good  and  intimate  gossip,  you  may  be  certain." 

By  this  time  the  last  faint  doubts  had  vanished. 
The  woman  wrung  her  uncouth  hands,  and  said,  with 
a  great  deal  of  sentiment:  "That^s  what  I  have 
always  been  saying,  you  are  a  square  and  honest  and 
beautiful  girl!  May  the  Lord  always  be  good  to 
you  and  reward  you  for  what  you  are  going  to  do 
forme!" 

"But  on  my  part,  I  must  insist  that  you,  too,  treat 
me  well." 

"Surely  you  have  a  right  to  expect  that,"  said  the 
woman. 

"And  that  you  at  all  times  offer  me  first  all  your 
produce,  be  it  fruit  or  potatoes,  or  vegetables,  and  to 
do  this  before  you  take  them  to  the  public  market, 
so  that  I  may  always  be  sure  of  having  a  real  peasant 
woman  on  hand,  one  upon  whom  I  may  rely.  What- 
ever anybody  else  is  willing  to  pay  you  for  your 
produce,  I  will  also  be  willing  to  give.  You  know  me. 
Why,  there  is  nothing  nicer  than  a  wealthy  city  lady, 
one  who  sits  within  town  walls  and  cannot  know 
prices  and  conditions  there,  and  yet  needs  so  many 
things  in  her  household,  and  an  honest  and  well- 
posted  woman  from  the  country,  experienced  in  all 
that  concerns  her,  who  are  bound  together  by  durable 
friendship  and  a  community  of  interests.  The  city 
lady  profits  from  it  at  all  sorts  of  occasions,  as  for 
example   at   weddings   and   baptisms,    at   seasons   of 


286  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

illness  or  crop  failure,  at  holidays  and  famine  time,  or 
inundations,  from  which  the  Lord  preserve  us!" 

"From  which  the  Lord  preserve  us!''  repeated  the 
woman  solemnly,  sobbing  and  wiping  her  wet  face  on 
her  ample  apron.  "But  what  a  sensible  and  well- 
informed  little  wife  you'll  make,  to  be  sure!  Without 
doubt  you  will  live  as  happily  as  a  mouse  in  the  cheese, 
or  there  is  no  justice  in  this  world.  Handsome,  clean, 
smart  and  wise,  fit  for  and  willing  to  tackle  all  work 
at  any  time.  None  is  as  good-looking  and  as  fine  as 
thou  art,  no,  not  in  the  whole  village,  and  even  some 
distance  further  away.  And  who  has  got  you  for  wife 
can  congratulate  himself;  he  is  bound  to  be  in  paradise, 
or  he  is  a  scoundrel,  and  he  will  have  me  to  deal  with. 
Listen,  Sali,  do  not  fail  to  be  nice  to  Vreni,  or  you  will 
hear  a  word  from  me,  you  lucky  devil,  to  break  such 
a  rose  without  thorns  as  this  one  here!" 

"For  to-day,  my  dear  woman,"  concluded  Vreni, 
"take  this  bundle  along,  as  we  agreed  yesterday, 
and  keep  it  till  I  send  for  it.  But  it  may  be  that  I 
myself  come  for  it,  in  my  own  carriage,  and  get  it,  if 
you  have  no  objection.  A  drink  of  milk  you  will  not 
refuse  me  in  that  case,  and  a  nice  cake,  such  as  perhaps 
an  almond  tart,  I  shall  probably  bring  along  myself." 

"You  blessed  child,  give  it  here,  your  bundle," 
the  peasant  woman  quavered,  still  completely  under 
the  influence  of  Vreni's  eloquence. 

Vreni  therefore  deposited  on  top  of  the  bedding 
which  the  woman  had  already  tied  up,  a  huge  bag 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    287 

containing  all  the  girl's  belongings,  so  that  the  stout- 
limbed  woman  was  bearing  a  perfect  tower  of  shaking 
and  trembling  baggage  on  her  head. 

*'It  is  almost  too  much  for  me  to  carry  at  once," 
she  complained.  "Could  I  not  come  again  and  divide 
the  load  in  halves?"  she  wanted  to  know. 

"No,  no,"  answered  Vreni,  "we  must  leave  here 
at  once,  for  we  have  to  visit  a  whole  number  of  wealthy 
relatives,  and  some  of  these  are  far  away,  the  kind, 
you  know,  who  have  now  recognized  us  since  we  have 
become  rich  ourselves.  You  know  how  the  world 
wags." 

"Yes,  indeed,"  said  the  woman,  "I  do  know,  and 
so  God  keep  you,  and  think  of  me  now  and  then  in 
your  glorious  new  state." 

Then  the  peasant  woman  trundled  off  with  her 
monstrously  high  tower  of  bundles,  preserving  its 
equilibrium  by  skillfully  balancing  the  weight,  and 
behind  her  trudged  her  boy,  who  stood  up  in  the 
center  of  Vreni's  gaily  painted  bedstead,  his  hard  head 
braced  against  the  baldaquin  of  it  in  which  the  eye 
beheld  stars  and  suns  in  a  firmament  of  multicolored 
muslin,  and  like  another  Samson,  grasping  with  his 
red  fists  the  two  prettily  carved  slender  pillars  in  front 
which  supported  the  whole.  As  Vreni,  leaning  against 
Sali,  watched  the  procession  meandering  down  be- 
tween the  gardens  of  the  nearer  houses,  and  the  afore- 
said little  temple  forming  part  of  her  whilom  bed- 
stead, she  remarked:    "That  would  still  make  a  fine 


288  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

little  arbor  or  garden  pavilion  if  placed  in  the  midst 
of  a  sunny  garden,  with  a  small  table  and  a  bench 
inside,  and  quickly  growing  vines  planted  around. 
Eh,  Sali,  wouldn't  you  like  to  sit  there  with  me  in  the 
shade?" 

"Why,  yes,  Vreni,"  said  he,  smiling,  "especially 
if  the  vines  once  had  grown  to  a  size." 

"But  why  not  go  now?"  continued  she.  "Nothing 
more  is  holding  us  here." 

"True,"  he  assented.  "Come,  then,  and  lock  up 
the  house.  But  to  whom  will  you  deHver  up  the 
key?" 

Vreni  looked  around.  "Here  to  this  halberd  let 
us  hang  it.  For  more  than  a  century  it  has  been  in 
our  house,  as  I've  often  heard  father  say.  Now  it 
stands  at  the  door  as  the  last  sentinel." 

So  they  hung  the  rusty  key  of  the  housedoor  to  one 
of  the  rustier  curves  of  the  stout  weapon,  which  was 
fairly  overgrown  with  bean  vines,  and  sallied  forth. 
•  But  after  all  Vreni  grew  faint,  and  Sali  had  to  sup- 
port her  the  first  score  steps,  the  parting  with  the 
place  where  her  cradle  had  stood  making  her  sad. 
But  she  did  not  look  back. 

"Where  are  we  bound  for  first?"  she  wanted  to  know. 

"Let  us  make  a  regular  excursion  across  the  coun- 
try," said  Sali,  "and  stop  at  a  spot  where  we  shall  be 
comfortable  all  day  long.  And  don't  let  us  hurry. 
Towards  evening  we  shall  easily  be  able  to  find  a 
dance  going  on." 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    289 

"Good,"  answered  Vreni.  "Thus  we  shall  be  to- 
gether the  whole  day,  and  go  where  we  like.  But 
above  all,  I  feel  quite  faint.  Let  us  stop  in  the  next 
village  and  get  some  coffee." 

"Of  course,"  said  the  young  man.  "But  let  us 
first  get  away  from  here." 

Soon  they  were  in  the  open,  fields  of  ripe,  waving 
corn  or  else  of  fresh  stubble  around  them,  and  went 
along,  quietly  and  full  of  deep  contentment,  close  to 
each  other,  breathing  the  pure  air  as  though  freed  from 
prison  walls.  It  was  a  dehcious  Sunday  morning  in 
September.  There  was  not  a  cloud  to  be  seen  in  the 
sky  of  deep  azure,  and  in  the  distance  the  hills  and 
woods  were  enwrapped  in  a  delicate  haze,  so  that  the 
whole  landscape  looked  more  solemn  and  mysterious. 
From  everywhere  the  toUing  of  the  church  bells  was 
heard,  the  harmonious  deep  tones  of  a  big  swinging 
bell  belonging  to  a  wealthy  congregation,  or  the 
talkative  two  small  bells  of  a  poor  village  that  made 
fast  time  to  create  any  impression  at  all.  The  lovers 
forgot  completely  as  to  what  was  to  become  of  them 
at  the  end  of  this  rare  day,  forgot  the  disturbing  un- 
certainties of  their  young  lives,  and  gave  themselves 
up  completely  to  the  intoxicating  delights  of  the  mo- 
ment, sank  their  very  souls  in  a  calm  joy  that  knew 
no  words  and  no  fears.  Neatly  clothed,  free  to  come 
or  go,  like  two  happy  ones  who  before  God  and  men 
belong  to  each  other  by  all  rights,  they  went  forth  into 
the  still  Sunday  country  side.     Each  slight  sound  or 


290  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

call,  reverberating  and  finally  losing  itself  in  the 
general  silence,  shook  their  hearts  as  though  the 
strings  of  a  harp  had  been  touched  by  divine  fingers. 
For  Love  is  a  musical  instrument  which  makes  resound 
the  farthest  and  the  most  indifferent  subjects  and 
changes  them  into  a  music  all  its  own. 

Though  both  were  hungry  and  faint,  the  half  hour's 
walk  to  the  next  village  seemed  to  them  but  a  step, 
and  they  entered  slowly  the  little  inn  that  stood  at 
the  entrance  to  the  place. 

Sali  ordered  a  substantial  and  appetizing  breakfast, 
and  while  it  was  being  prepared  they  observed,  quiet 
as  two  mice,  the  interior  of  this  homely  place  of  enter- 
tainment, everything  in  it  being  scrupulously  clean 
and  orderly,  from  the  walls  and  tables  and  napkins 
to  the  hearth  and  floor.  The  guest  room  itself  was 
large  and  airy,  and  the  window  panes  glittered  in 
the  furtive  rays  of  the  sun.  The  host  of  the  inn  was 
at  the  same  time  a  baker,  and  his  last  baking,  just 
out  of  the  oven,  spread  a  delicious  odor  through  the 
whole  house.  Stacks  of  fresh  loaves  were  carried 
past  them  in  clean  baskets,  since  after  church  service 
the  members  of  the  congregation  were  in  the  habit  of 
getting  here  their  white  bread  or  to  drink  their  noon 
shoppen.  The  hostess,  a  rather  handsome  and  neat 
woman,  dressed  in  their  Sunday  finery  all  her  little 
brood  of  children,  leisurely  and  pleasantly,  and  as  she 
was  done  with  one  more  of  the  little  ones,  the  latter, 
proud  and  glad,  would  come  running  to  Vreni,  showing 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    291 

her  all  their  finery,  and  innocently  boasting  and  brag- 
ging of  their  belongings  and  of  all  else  they  held 
precious. 

When  at  last  the  fragrant  coffee  was  brought  and 
served  for  them,  together  with  other  good  things,  at 
a  convenient  table,  the  two  young  people  sat  down 
somewhat  embarrassed,  just  as  if  they  had  been 
invited  as  honored  guests  to  do  so.  But  they  got 
over  this  mood,  and  whispered  to  each  other  modestly 
but  happily,  feeling  the  joy  of  each  other's  presence. 
And  oh,  how  Vreni  enjoyed  her  breakfast,  the  strong 
coffee,  the  cream,  the  fresh  rolls  still  warm  from  the 
oven,  the  rich  butter  and  the  honey,  the  omelet,  and 
all  the  other  splendid  things  dished  up  for  them. 
Delicious  it  all  tasted,  not  only  because  she  had  been 
really  hungry,  but  because  she  could  look  all  the 
while  at  Sali,  and  she  ate  and  ate,  as  if  she  had  been 
fasting  for  a  whole  year. 

With  that  she  also  took  pleasure  in  the  pretty 
service,  the  fine  cups  and  saucers  and  dishes,  the 
dainty  silver  spoons,  and  the  snowy  linen.  For  the 
hostess  seemed  to  have  made  up  her  mind  about  these 
two,  and  she  evidently  regarded  them  as  young  people 
of  good  family,  who  were  to  be  waited  upon  in  proper 
style,  and  several  times  she  came  and  sat  down  by 
them,  chatting  most  agreeably,  and  both  Sali  and 
Vreni  answered  her  sensibly,  whereat  the  woman 
became  still  more  affable.  And  Vreni  felt  the  whole- 
some influence  of  all  this  so  strongly,  and  a  sense  of 


292  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

snug  comfort  coursed  so  pleasantly  through  her  veins 
that  she  in  her  mind  found  it  hard  to  choose  between 
the  delights  of  wandering  about  in  the  woods  and 
fields,  hand  in  hand  with  her  lover,  or  remaining  for 
some  time  longer  here  in  this  inn,  in  this  haven  of 
rest  and  creature  comfort,  honored  and  respected 
and  dreaming  herself  into  the  illusion  of  owning  such 
a  nice  home  as  this  herself. 

But  Sali  himself  rendered  the  choice  easier,  for  in 
a  perfectly  proper  and  rather  husbandlike  manner 
he  urged  departure,  just  as  though  they  had  duties 
to  fulfil  elsewhere.  Both  host  and  hostess  saw  the 
young  couple  to  the  door,  and  bade  them  good-by  in 
the  most  orthodox  and  well-meaning  way,  and  Vreni, 
too,  showed  her  manners  and  reciprocated  their 
courtesy  like  one  to  the  manner  born,  then  following 
Sali  in  most  decent  and  moral  style.  But  even  after 
reaching  the  open  country  once  more  and  entering  an 
oak  forest  a  couple  of  miles  long,  both  of  them  were 
still  under  the  influence  of  the  spell,  and  they  went 
along  in  a  dreamy  mood,  just  as  though  they  both 
did  not  come  from  homes  destroyed  and  filled  with 
hatred  and  discord,  but  from  happy  and  harmonious 
homes,  expecting  from  life  the  near  fulfilment  of  all 
their  rosy  hopes. 

Vreni  bent  her  pretty  head  down  on  her  flower- 
bedecked  bosom,  deep  in  thought,  and  went  along 
the  smooth,  damp  woodpath  with  hands  carefully 
held  along  her  sides,  while  Sali  stepped  along  elastic 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE     293 

and  upright,  quick  and  thoughtful,  his  eyes  fastened 
to  the  oak  trunks  ahead  of  him,  like  a  well-to-do 
peasant  reflecting  on  the  problem  which  of  these 
trees  it  would  best  pay  to  cut  down  and  which  to  leave. 
But  at  last  they  awoke  from  these  vain  dreams,  glanced 
at  each  other  and  discovered  that  they  were  still 
maintaining  the  attitude  with  which  they  had  left 
the  inn.  Then  they  both  blushed  and  their  heads 
drooped  in  melancholy  fashion.  Youth,  however, 
soon  reasserted  itself.  The  woods  were  green,  the 
sky  overhead  faultlessly  blue,  and  they  were  alone 
by  themselves  in  the  world,  and  thus  they  soon  drifted 
back  into  that  train  of  thought.  But  they  did  not 
long  remain  by  themselves,  since  this  attractive  forest 
road  began  to  be  alive  with  groups  and  couples  out 
for  a  bracing  walk  in  the  cool  shade,  most  of  them 
returning  from  service  in  church,  and  nearly  all  of 
these  were  singing  gay  worldly  tunes,  trifling  and 
joking  with  each  other.  For  in  these  parts  it  so  hap- 
pens that  the  rustics  have  their  customary  walks  and 
promenades  as  well  as  the  city  dwellers,  to  which  they 
resort  at  leisure,  only  with  this  great  difference  that 
their  pleasure  grounds  cost  nothing  to  maintain  and 
that  these  are  finer  in  every  way,  since  Nature  alone 
has  made  them.  Not  alone  do  they  stroll  about  on 
Sundays  through  fields  and  meadows  and  woods 
with  a  peculiar  sense  of  freedom  and  recreation, 
taking  stock  of  their  ripening  crops  and  the  prospects 
of  the  harvest  to  come,  but  they  also  choose  with 


294  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

unerring  taste  excursions  along  the  edge  of  forest  or 
meadow,  hill  or  dale,  sit  down  for  a  brief  rest  on  the 
summit  of  a  height,  whence  they  enjoy  a  fine  view, 
or  sing  in  chorus  at  another  suitable  spot,  and  certainly 
obtain  fully  as  much,  if  not  more,  pleasure  out  of  all 
this  as  town  folk  do.  And  since  they  do  all  this,  not 
as  labor  but  diversion,  one  must  conclude  that  these 
rustics,  despite  of  what  has  often  been  claimed  to  the 
contrary,  are  lovers  of  nature,  aside  from  the  strictly 
utilitarian  view  of  it.  And  always  they  break  off 
something  green  and  Hving,  young  and  old,  even 
weak  and  decrepit  women,  when  they  revisit  the 
scenes  of  long  ago,  and  the  same  spirit  is  seen  in 
the  habit  that  these  country  people  have,  including 
sedate  men  of  business,  of  cutting  for  themselves  a 
slender  rod  of  hazel,  or  a  snappy  cane,  whenever  they 
walk  through  woods  or  forest,  and  these  they  will  peel 
all  but  a  small  bunch  of  green  leaves  at  the  point. 
Such  rods  or  twigs  they  will  bear  as  though  it  were  a 
sceptre,  and  when  they  enter  an  office  or  public  place 
they  will  put  them  in  a  corner  of  the  room,  and  never 
forget  to  get  them  again,  even  after  the  most  serious 
and  important  matters  have  been  discussed,  and  to 
take  them  along  with  them  home.  And  it  is  then 
only  the  privilege  of  the  youngest  of  their  boys  to 
seize  it,  break  it,  play  with  it,  in  fine,  destroy  it. 

When  Sali  and  Vreni  noticed  these  many  couples 
out  for  a  holiday  stroll,  they  laughed  to  themselves, 
and  rejoiced  that  they,  too,  were  such  a  happy  pair; 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    295 

they  lost  themselves  on  side  paths  that  led  away  from 
every  noise,  and  there  they  felt  protected  by  the  green 
solitude.  They  remained  where  they  liked,  went  on 
or  rested  again  for  a  spell,  and  in  unison  with  the 
sky  overhead  which  was  cloudless,  no  carking  care 
came  to  disturb  their  serenity.  This  state  of  perfect, 
unalloyed  bliss  lasted  for  them  for  hours,  and  they 
for  the  time  forgot  wholly  whence  they  came  and 
whither  they  were  going,  and  behaved  with  such  a 
degree  of  decorum  that  Vreni's  little  posy  actually 
remained  as  fresh  and  intact  as  it  had  been  early 
in  the  morning,  and  her  plain  Sunday  dress  showed 
neither  crease  nor  stain.  As  to  Sali,  he  behaved 
all  this  time  not  like  a  youthful  rustic  of  less  than 
twenty,  nor  like  the  son  of  a  broken-down  tavern 
keeper,  but  rather  like  a  youth  a  couple  of  years 
younger  and  quite  innocent,  withal  of  the  best  edu- 
cation. It  was  almost  comical  to  observe  his  conduct 
towards  his  merry  Vreni,  looking  at  her  with  a  touch- 
ing mixture  of  tenderness,  respect  and  care.  For  these 
two  lovers,  so  unsophisticated  and  so  entirely  without 
guile,  somehow  understood  how  to  run  in  the  course 
of  this  one  day  of  perfect  joy  vouchsafed  them 
through  all  the  gamut  of  love,  and  to  make  up  not 
alone  for  the  earlier  and  more  poetic  stages  of  it  but 
also  to  taste  its  bitter  and  ultimate  end  with  its  pas- 
sionate sacrifice  of  life  itself. 

Thus    they    thoroughly    tired    themselves    running 
about  part  of  the  day,  and  hunger  had  come  a  second 


296  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

time  that  day  when,  from  the  crest  of  a  shady  moun- 
tain, they  at  last  perceived,  far  down  at  their  feet, 
a  village  of  some  size  lying  there  in  the  glow  of  the 
westering  sun.  Rapidly  they  made  the  descent, 
and  entered  the  village  just  as  decorously  as  they  had 
done  the  other  earlier  in  the  day.  Nobody  was 
about  that  knew  them  even  by  sight,  for  Vreni  particu- 
larly had  scarcely  at  all  mingled  with  people  during 
the  last  few  years,  nor  had  she  been  off  on  visits  to 
other  villages.  Therefore  they  presented  entirely 
the  appearance  of  a  decent  young  couple  out  on  an 
errand  of  importance. 

They  went  to  the  best  inn  of  the  place,  and  there  Sali 
at  once  ordered  a  good  and  substantial  meal.  A  table 
was  specially  reserved  for  them,  and  everything  need- 
ful was  there  laid  out  and  they  sat  down  again  de- 
murely in  the  corner  and  eyed  the  trappings  and  fur- 
niture of  the  handsome  room,  with  its  wainscoted 
walls  of  polished  walnut,  the  well-appointed  side- 
board of  the  same  wood,  and  the  filmy  window  cur- 
tains of  white  lace.  The  hostess  stepped  up  to  them 
in  a  sociable  manner,  and  set  a  vase  full  of  fresh  flowers 
on  the  table. 

*' Until  the  soup  is  ready,"  she  said  pleasantly, 
"you  may  like  to  feast  your  eyes  on  these  flowers 
from  our  garden.  From  all  appearance,  if  you  don't 
mind  my  curiosity,  you  are  a  young  couple  on  their 
way  to  town  to  get  married  to-morrow?" 

Vreni  blushed  furiously,  and  did  not  dare  raise  her 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    297 

head.  Nor  did  Sali  say  anything  in  reply,  and  the 
hostess  continued:  "Well,  of  course,  you  are  both 
still  very  young.  But  young  love,  long  life,  as  the 
saying  is,  and  at  least  you  are  both  good-looking 
enough  and  need  not  hide  yourselves  from  people.  ■  If 
you  will  but  work  and  strive  together  like  sensible 
folk,  you  may  succeed  in  life  before  you  know  it,  for 
youth  is  a  good  thing,  and  so  are  diligence  and  faith 
in  one  another.  But  that,  of  course,  is  necessary, 
for  there  will  come  also  days  you  will  not  like,  many 
days,  many  days.  But  after  all,  life  is  pleasant  enough, 
if  one  but  understands  how  to  make  a  proper  use  of 
it.  And  don't  mind  my  chatter,  you  young  people, 
but  it  does  me  good  to  look  at  you  two,  so  handsome 
and  young.*' 

Just  then  the  waitress  brought  in  the  soup,  and 
since  she  had  overheard  the  concluding  phrases, 
and  would  herself  have  liked  to  get  married,  she 
regarded  Vreni  with  envious  eyes,  for  she  begrudged 
her  what  she  assumed  was  so  soon  in  store  for  this 
young  girl.  She  retired  precipitately  into  the  adjoin- 
ing room,  and  there  she  let  her  tongue  go  clacking. 
To  the  hostess  who  was  busy  there  with  some  house- 
hold task,  she  said,  so  loud  as  to  be  distinctly  heard 
by  the  young  people:  "Yes,  these  are  indeed  the 
right  kind  of  people  to  go  to  town  and  hurry  up  marry- 
ing, without  a  penny,  without  friends,  without  dowry, 
and  with  nothing  in  view  but  misery  and  beggary! 
What  in  the  world  is  to  become  of  such  people  if  the 


298  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

girl  is  still  so  young  that  she  does  not  even  know  how 
to  put  on  her  frock  or  jacket,  nor  how  to  cook  a  plate 
of  soup!  Oh,  what  fools!  But  I  feel  sorry  for  the 
young  fellow,  such  a  good-looking  fellow  he  is,  and  then 
to  get  a  little  ignorant  doll  like  that!'^ 

"Sh-sh  —  will  you  keep  your  mouth  shut,  you  evil- 
mouthed  slut,"  broke  in  the  indignant  hostess.  "  Don't 
you  dare  say  anything  against  them.  I  am  pretty 
sure  that  is  a  deserving  young  couple,  and  I  will  not 
hear  them  wronged.  Probably  they  are  from  the 
mountains  where  the  factories  are,  and  while  they  are 
not  dressed  richly  they  look  neat  and  cleanly,  and  if 
only  they  are  fond  of  each  other  and  not  afraid  of  work, 
they  will  get  along  better  than  you  with  your  bitter 
tongue.  And  that  I  will  tell  you  —  you'll  have  to 
wait  a  long  while  before  anybody  will  take  you,  unless 
you  change  considerably,  you  vinegary  old  thing!" 

Thus  it  was  that  Vreni  tasted  all  the  delights  of 
a  bride  on  her  wedding  trip:  the  well-meaning  con- 
versation of  an  experienced  and  sensible  woman,  the 
jealousy  of  a  wicked  and  man-crazy  person,  one  who 
from  anger  at  the  bride  praises  and  sympathizes  with 
the  lover,  and  an  appetizing  meal  at  the  side  of  this 
same  lover.  She  glowed  in  the  face  like  a  carnation, 
her  heart  beat  like  a  trip  hammer,  but  she  ate  and 
drank  nevertheless  with  a  perfectly  normal  appetite, 
and  was  all  the  more  amiable  with  the  waitress  who 
served  them,  but  could  not  help  on  such  occasions 
looking  tenderly  at  Sali,  and  whispering  to  him,  so 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    299 

that  he  also  began  to  feel  rather  amorous.  However, 
they  sat  a  long  time  over  their  meal,  delaying  its 
end,  as  though  they  were  both  unwilling  to  destroy 
the  lovely  deception.  The  hostess  came  and  brought 
them  for  dessert  all  sorts  of  sweet  cakes  and  other 
dainties,  and  Sali  ordered  rarer  and  more  fiery  wine, 
so  that  the  choice  liquor  ran  through  Vreni's  veins 
like  a  flame,  albeit  she  was  cautious  and  sipped  it 
but  sparingly  and  kept  up  the  semblance  of  a  chaste 
and  prudent  young  bride.  Half  of  this  was  natural 
cunning  on  her  part;  but  as  for  the  other  half,  she 
felt  indeed  as  if  the  role  were  reality,  and  what  with 
anxiety  and  what  with  ardent  love  for  Sali  she  thought 
her  little  heart  would  burst,  so  that  the  walls  seemed 
to  her  too  narrow,  and  she  begged  him  to  go.  And 
they  went  off.  It  was  now  as  if  they  were  afraid  to 
turn  aside  from  the  main  road  and  into  side  paths, 
where  they  would  be  by  themselves,  for  they  continued 
on  the  highway,  right  through  the  throng  of  pleasure 
seekers,  not  looking  to  right  or  left.  But  when  they 
had  left  the  village  behind  them  and  were  on  their 
way  towards  the  next,  where  kermess  was  being 
celebrated,  Vreni  linked  her  arm  in  his  and  whispered: 
"Sali,  why  not  belong  altogether  one  to  the  other 
and  be  happy!" 

And  Sali  answered,  fastening  his  dreamy  eyes  upon 
the  sun-flooded  valley  below  where  the  meadows 
showed  like  a  purple  carpet  of  wildflowers,  "Ah, 
why  not?'' 


300  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

And  they  instantly  stopped  in  the  road,  and  wanted 
to  kiss  each  other.  But  suddenly  a  group  of  passers-by 
broke  out  of  the  near  woods,  and  then  they  felt  shy 
and  desisted.  On  they  went  towards  the  big  village 
in  which  the  bustle  of  kermess  was  already  noticeable 
from  afar.  The  lanes  were  crowded,  and  before  the 
most  considerable  tavern  of  the  place  a  multitude 
of  noisy,  shouting  people  were  assembled.  From 
inside  the  tavern  the  strains  of  a  lively,  gay  tune  were 
heard.  For  the  young  villagers  had  begun  dancing 
shortly  after  the  noon  hour,  and  on  an  open  square  in 
front  of  the  tavern  a  market  had  been  established 
where  all  sorts  of  sweets  were  for  sale,  and  in  another 
couple  of  booths  could  be  seen  flimsy  bits  of  finery, 
ornaments,  silk  kerchiefs  and  the  like,  and  around 
these  were  to  be  seen  children  and  some  others  who 
for  the  moment  were  content  to  be  mere  observers. 

Sali  and  Vreni  also  stepped  up  to  these  booths, 
and  they  let  their  eyes  travel  over  all  these  things. 
For  both  had  instantly  put  their  hands  in  their  pockets 
and  each  wanted  to  present  the  other  with  a  little 
gift,  since  that  was  the  first  and  only  time  they  had 
been  together  at  a  fair.  Sali,  therefore,  bought  a 
big  house  of  gingerbread,  the  walls  of  which  were 
calsomined  with  a  mixture  of  butter  and  melted  sugar, 
and  on  the  green  roof  of  which  were  perching  snow- 
white  pigeons,  while  from  the  chimney  a  small  cupid 
was  peeping  forth  clad  as  a  chimney  sweep.  At  the 
open  windows  of  this  wonderful  house  plump-cheeked 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    301 

persons  with  diminutive  red  mouths  were  embracing 
each  other  most  affectionately,  the  kissing  process 
being  represented  by  the  gingerbread  artist  by  a 
sort  of  double  mouth,  or  twins,  one  melting  into  the 
other.  Black  points  meant  eyes,  and  on  the  pinky- 
red  housedoor  there  could  be  read  the  following  touch- 
ing stanzas: 

Enter  my  house,  beloved, 
Yet  do  not  thou  forget 
That  all  the  coin  accepted 
Is  kisses  sweet,  you  bet. 

His  sweetheart  said:  "Oh,  dear  one, 
This  threat  does  not  deter! 
My  love  for  thee  is  greater 
Than  any  kind  of  fare. 

"And  come  to  think  it  over, 

'Twas  kisses  I  did  seek.'^ 
Well,  then,  step  in,  my  lady, 
And  let  thy  lips  now  speak. 

A  gentleman  in  a  blue  frock  coat  and  a  lady  with  an 
expansive  bosom  thus  complimented  each  other  by 
these  rhymes  into  the  house;  both  were  painted  to 
right  and  left  of  the  wall.  Vreni  on  her  part  presented 
Sali  with  a  gingerbread  heart,  on  which  on  either  side 
these  verses  were  pasted: 


302  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

A  sweet,  sweet  almond  pierces  my  heart,  as  you  see, 
But  sweeter  far  than  almonds  is  my  love  for  thee. 

When  thou  my  heart  hast  eaten, 
Oh,  let  me  not  disguise 
That  sooner  than  my  love  can  break 
Will  break  my  nutbrown  eyes. 

Both  of  them  eagerly  read  these  verses,  and  never 
had  rhymes,  never  had  any  kind  of  poetry,  been  more 
deeply  felt  and  appreciated  than  were  these  ginger- 
bread stanzas.  They  could  not  help  fancying  that 
they  had  been  specially  written  for  them,  for  they 
fitted  so  marvelously  their  requirements. 

"Ah,  you  give  me  a  house,"  sighed  Vreni.  "But 
I  have  first  made  thee  a  gift  of  one  myself,  and  of  the 
real  one.  For  our  hearts  are  now  our  sole  dwellings, 
and  within  them  we  live,  and  we  carry  our  houses 
about  with  us  wherever  we  may  go,  just  like  the  snail. 
Other  abode  we  have  none  left  now." 

"But  then  we  are  snails  really,  of  which  each  carries 
the  house  of  the  other,"  replied  Sali. 

"Then  we  must  never  leave  each  other,  for  fear  that 
we  lose  the  other's  house,"  answered  Vreni. 

They  did  not  notice  that  they  themselves  were 
perpetrating  the  same  species  of  humor  as  was  spread 
out  on  the  printed  pasters  of  the  gingerbread  liter- 
ature. So  they  continued  to  study  the  latter  with 
deep  interest.  The  most  pathetic  sentiments,  both 
agreed,  were  found  on  the  heartshaped  cakes,  whereof 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE   303 

there  was  a  great  choice,  both  plain  and  ornamental, 
small  and  large.  All  the  verses  they  read  seemed  to 
them  wonderfully  apt  and  appropriate  to  the  occasion. 
When  Vreni  read  on  a  gilt  heart  which  like  a  lyre 
bore  strings: 

My  heart  is  like  a  fiddlestring, 
Touch  gently  it  and  it  will  sing, 

she  could  not  refrain  from  remarking:  "How  true  that 
is!  Why,  I  can  hear  my  own  heart  making  music!" 
An  image  of  Napoleon  in  gingerbread  was  also  there, 
and  even  this,  instead  of  speaking  in  heroic  measure, 
symbolized  a  love-smitten  swain,  for  it  declared  in 
wretched  rhym.e:  {  • 

Terrific  was  Napoleon's  might,  ' 

His  sword  of  steel,  his  heart  was  light; 
My  love  is  sweet  like  any  rose. 
Yet  is  she  faithful,  goodness  knows. 

But  while  both  seemed  busy  sounding  all  the  depths 
of  these  appeals  to  the  muses,  they  secretly  made  a 
purchase.  Sali  bought  for  Vreni  a  small  gift  ring, 
with  a  stone  of  green  glass,  and  Vreni  a  ring  fashioned 
out  of  chamois  horn,  in  which  a  gold  forget-me-not 
was  cleverly  inlaid.  Probably  both  were  moved  with 
the  same  idea,  that  of  a  farewell  gift. 

However,  while  they  thus  were  entirely  engrossed 
with  these  things  they  had  not  remarked  that  a  wide 
ring  was  forming  gradually  around  them  made  up 
of  people  who  watched  them  closely  and  curiously. 


304  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

For  as  quite  a  number  of  lads  and  lasses  from  their 
own  village  had  come  to  the  kermess,  they  had  been 
recognized,  and  these  all  now  stood  at  some  little 
distance  away  from  them,  regarding  with  astonish- 
ment this  neatly  dressed  couple  that  in  their  intense 
preoccupation  had  eyes  for  nothing  else  in  the  world. 

"Just  look,"  the  murmuring  went  round;  "why, 
that  is  Vreni  Marti  and  Sali  from  town.  They  surely 
have  met  and  made  up.  And  what  tenderness,  what 
friendship  for  one  another!    Only  notice!" 

The  amazement  of  these  onlookers  was  strangely 
mingled  of  pity  with  the  ill-fortune  of  the  young  couple, 
of  disdain  for  the  wickedness  and  poverty  of  their 
parents,  and  of  envy  for  the  happiness  and  deep 
affection  of  these  two,  f  For  it  struck  these  coarse 
materialistic  rustics  that  the  couple)  were  fond  of  each 
other  in  a  manner  most  unusual  in  their  own  circles, 
excited  to  an  uncommon  degree  and  so  taken  up  with 
one  another  and  indifferent  to  all  else,  as  to  make  them 
almost  appear  to  belong  to  a  more  aristocratic  sphere, 
so  that  altogether  they  seemed  singular  and  strange 
to  these  gross  villagers. 

When  therefore  Sali  and  Vreni  finally  awoke  from 
their  dreams  and  threw  a  glance  around,  they  saw 
nothing  but  staring  faces.  Nobody  greeted  them; 
and  they  themselves  knew  not  whether  to  salute 
anyone  of  these  former  acquaintances,  whose  show 
of  unfriendliness  was,  just  the  same,  not  so  much 
design   as   astonishment.    Vreni   became   afraid   and 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE   305 

blushed  from  sheer  embarrassment,  but  Sali  took 
her  hand  and  led  her  away.  And  the  poor  girl  fol- 
lowed him  willingly,  bearing  in  her  hand  the  huge 
gingerbread  cottage,  although  the  trumpets  and 
horns  from  inside  the  inn  sounded  so  invitingly,  and 
although  she  was  most  anxious  and  eager  to  dance. 

"We  cannot  dance  here,"  said  Sali,  when  they  had 
been  going  some  little  distance  aside,  "for  there  would 
not  be  any  amusement  in  it  under  the  circumstances.'' 

"You  are  right,"  Vreni  said  sadly,  "and  I  really 
think  now  we  had  better  drop  the  whole  idea  and 
I  will  try  and  find  a  place  for  me  to  stay  overnight." 

"No,"  Sali  cried,  "you  must  have  a  chance  to  dance 
for  once.  For  that,  too,  I  brought  you  the  shoes. 
Let  us  go  where  the  poor  folks  are  having  a  good  time, 
since  we,  too,  belong  to  them.  They  will  not  look 
down  on  us.  At  every  kermess  here  there  is  also 
dancing  at  the  Paradise  Garden,  since  it  belongs  to 
this  parish,  and  we  are  going  there,  and  you  can,  if 
it  comes  to  the  worst,  also  find  a  bed  to  sleep  there." 

Vreni  shuddered  at  the  thought  of  having  to  sleep 
for  the  first  time  of  her  young  life  in  a  place  where 
nobody  knew  her.  But  she  followed  without  a  murmur 
where  Sali  led  her.  Was  he  not  everything  in  the  world 
to  her  now?  The  so-called  Paradise  Garden  was  a 
house  of  entertainment  situated  in  a  beautiful  spot, 
lying  all  by  itself  at  the  side  of  a  mountain  from  which 
one  had  a  view  far  over  the  whole  country.  But  on 
holidays  like  this  only  the  poorer  classes,  the  children 


3o6  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

of  small  farmers  and  of  day  laborers,  even  vagrants, 
used  to  resort  to  it.  A  hundred  years  before  a  wealthy 
man  of  queer  habits  had  built  it  as  a  summer  villa 
for  himself,  and  nobody  had  succeeded  him  as  tenant, 
and  since  the  house  could  not  be  used  for  anything 
else,  the  whole  place  after  a  while  began  to  decay, 
and  so  finally  it  got  into  the  hands  of  an  innkeeper 
who  managed  it  in  his  own  peculiar  way. 

The  name  alone  and  the  style  of  architecture  had 
remained.  The  house  itself  consisted  of  -  but  one 
story,  and  on  top  of  that  an  open  loggia  had  been 
erected,  the  roof  of  which  was  borne  on  the  four  corners 
by  statues  of  sandstone.  These  were  meant  for  the 
four  archangels  and  were  wholly  defaced.  At  the  edge 
of  the  roof  could  be  seen  all  about  small  angels  carved 
of  the  same  material  and  all  of  them  playing  some 
musical  instrument,  the  angels  themselves  showing 
monstrous  heads  and  big  paunches,  fiddling,  touching 
the  triangle,  blowing  the  flute,  striking  the  cymbal 
or  the  tambourine;  these  instruments  had  originally 
been  gilt.  The  ceiling  inside  and  the  low  sidewalls, 
as  well  as  all  the  rest  of  the  house  were  still  covered 
with  rather  dingy  fresco  paintings,  and  these  repre- 
sented dancing  and  singing  saints.  But  all  of  it  had 
suffered  from  the  weather  and  the  rain,  and  was 
now  as  indistinct  and  chaotic  as  a  dream  itself.  And 
besides,  all  over  the  walls  clambered  grapevines,  and 
at  this  time  of  year  purplish  ripening  grapes  peeped 
forth  from  between  the  foliage.    All  about  the  house 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    307 

itself  there  stood  chestnut  trees,  and  gnarled  big  rose- 
bushes, growing  wildly  after  a  fashion  of  their  own, 
just  as  lilac  bushes  would  grow  elsewhere. 

The  loggia  served  as  dance  hall,  and  as  Vreni  and 
Sali  came  in  sight  of  the  building  they  could  notice 
the  dancing  couples  turning  around  and  around 
under  the  open  roof,  and  outside,  under  the  trees, 
drinking,  shouting  and  noisy  men  and  women  were 
disporting  themselves.    It  was  a  merry  throng. 

Vreni,  who  was  carrying  in  her  hand,  demurely  and 
almost  piously,  her  wonderful  gingerbread  palace, 
resembled  one  of  those  ancient  and  sainted  church 
patronesses  sometimes  seen  in  missals,  with  a  model 
of  the  cathedral  or  other  devout  foundation  displayed 
which  would  earn  her  the  Church's  benediction.  But 
as  soon  as  she  heard  the  wild  music  that  came  down 
in  a  tumbling  stream  from  the  loggia,  the  poor  thing 
forgot  her  grief.  Suddenly  all  alive  she  demanded 
rapturously  that  Sali  should  dance  with  her.  They 
pushed  their  way  through  all  these  people  that  were 
crowding  the  environs  of  the  house  and  the  lower  floor, 
these  being  mostly  ragged  people  from  Seldwyla, 
with  some  who  had  been  making  a  cheap  excursion  into 
the  country,  and  all  sorts  of  homeless  vagrants.  Then 
they  ascended  the  stairs  and  at  once  after  arriving 
on  top  they  seized  each  other  and  were  whirling  away 
in  a  lively  waltz.  Not  an  eye  did  they  give  to  their 
surroundings  until  the  music  came  to  a  temporary 
halt.    Then  they  stopped  and  turned  around.    Vreni 


3o8  SELDWYLA   FOLKS 

had  crushed  her  gingerbread  house,  and  was  just 
going  to  shed  a  few  tears  on  that  account  when  she 
noticed  the  black  fiddler,  and  now  felt  a  veritable 
terror. 

He  was  seated  near  them,  upon  a  bench  which  itself 
stood  upon  a  big  table,  and  he  looked  just  as  black  and 
tawny  as  ever.  But  to-day  he  wore  a  bunch  of  green 
holly  and  pine  in  his  funny  little  hat,  and  at  his  feet 
there  stood  a  big  bottle  of  claret  and  a  tumbler,  and 
he  did  not  in  the  least  touch  either  of  these  with  his 
feet,  although  he  was  forever  kicking  up  his  legs  to 
keep  the  tune  while  fiddling.  Next  to  him  sat  a 
handsome  young  man  with  a  French  horn,  but  the 
young  man  looked  melancholy,  and  a  hunchback 
there  also  was,  standing  next  a  bass  viol.  Sali  also 
had  a  fright  in  seeing  the  black  fiddler,  but  the  latter 
greeted  them  both  in  the  friendliest  manner  and 
called  out  to  them:  "You  see  I  knew  that  some  day 
I  should  play  to  your  dancing,  just  as  I  said  when 
I  last  met  you.  And  now,  you  darlings,  I  trust  you'll 
have  a  good  time,  and  take  a  drink  with  me." 

He  offered  the  full  glass  to  Sali,  who  accepted  it, 
emptied  it  and  thanked  the  fiddler.  And  when  he 
saw  that  Vreni  was  badly  scared  at  seeing  him,  he 
did  his  best  to  reassure  her,  and  jested  with  her  in 
a  rather  nice  way,  until  he  had  made  her  laugh.  There- 
upon Vreni  recovered  her  courage,  and  both  of  them 
felt  rather  glad  that  they  had  an  acquaintance  there 
and  were  in  a  certain  sense  standing  under  the  special 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    309 

protection  of  the  black  fellow.  Then  they  danced 
steadily,  forgetting  themselves  and  the  whole  world 
in  the  constant  twirling,  singing,  shouting  and  general 
noise,  a  noise  which  rolled  down  the  hill  and  over  the 
whole  landscape  which  gradually  began  to  be  shrouded 
in  a  silvery  autumn  haze.  They  danced  until  twilight, 
when  most  of  the  merry  guests  disappeared,  unsteady 
on  their  feet  and  shouting  at  the  top  of  their  voices. 
Those  still  remaining  were  the  vagrants  and  stragglers, 
houseless  and  strongly  inclined  to  turn  night  into  day. 
Amongst  these  there  were  some  who  seemed  on  very 
friendly  terms  with  the  black  fiddler  and  who  for  the 
most  part  looked  outlandish  because  of  oddities  of 
costume.  There  was,  for  instance,  a  young  man  in  a 
green  corduroy  jacket  and  a  tattered  straw  hat,  who 
wore  around  the  crown  of  the  latter  a  wreath  of  wild 
scarlet  berries.  He  again  had  with  him  a  savage 
sort  of  female  who  wore  a  skirt  of  cherry-red  chintz 
and  had  a  hoop  made  of  young  grapevine  tied  around 
her  temples,  so  that  at  each  side  of  her  face  hung  a 
bunch  of  grapes.  This  couple  was  the  joUiest  of  all,  to 
be  met  with  everywhere,  and  was  dancing  and  singing 
without  a  stop.  Then  there  was  a  slender,  graceful 
girl  there,  wearing  a  thin  silk  dress  and  a  white  cloth  on 
her  head,  the  ends  of  which  fell  on  her  shoulders.  The 
cloth  had  evidently  once  been  a  napkin  or  towel.  But 
below  this  doubtful  cloth  there  glowed  a  pair  of  mag- 
nificent eyes  of  deep  violet  hue.  Around  her  neck  this 
extravagant  person  wore  a  sixfold  chain  of  the  same 


3IO  SELDWYLA   FOLKS 

autumnal  berries,  and  this  ornament  suited  her  com- 
plexion marvelously  well.  This  strange  woman  was 
dancing  perpetually  with  none  but  herself,  whirling  al- 
most unintermittently,  with  great  grace  and  a  very 
light  step,  refusing  every  partner  that  offered  himself. 
Every  time  she  passed  in  her  dancing  the  sad  horn- 
blower  she  smiled,  and  the  musician  turned  away  his 
head. 

Some  other  gay  women  or  girls  there  were,  together 
with  their  escorts,  all  of  them  poorly  or  fantastically 
clad,  but  with  all  that  they  assuredly  enjoyed  them- 
selves greatly,  and  there  seemed  to  be  perfect  accord 
among  them  all.  When  it  had  turned  completely 
dark  the  host  refused  to  furnish  light  for  illumination, 
since  the  wind  would  blow  the  candles  out  anyway, 
and  besides  the  full-moon  would  be  out  in  a  short 
spell,  and  for  the  present  company,  he  claimed,  the 
moonlight  was  ample.  This  declaration,  instead  of 
being  opposed,  caused  general  satisfaction  among 
this  mongrel  crowd;  they  all  stood  up  at  the  open  sides 
of  the  dance  hall  and  watched  the  moon  rise  in  her 
full  splendor,  and  when  the  new  golden  light  flooded 
the  wide  hall,  dancing  was  resumed  with  great  earnest- 
ness. And  so  quiet,  good-natured  and  well-mannered 
was  it  done  as  if  they  were  turning  under  the  light  of 
a  hundred  wax  candles.  This  singular  light,  too,  made 
them  all  more  intimately  acquainted  with  each  other, 
as  though  they  had  known  them  for  years,  and  thus 
it  was  that  Sali  and  Vreni  could  not  very  well  avoid 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    311 

mingling  with  the  rest  and  dancing  with  other  part- 
ners. But  whenever  they  had  been  separated  for 
just  a  short  while  they  flew  and  rejoined  the  other 
without  delay,  and  felt  delighted  thereat.  Sali  made 
a  sad  face  at  this,  and  when  dancing  with  another 
person  would  turn  toward  Vreni.  But  she  would 
not  notice  that,  but  would  glide  along  like  a  fairy, 
her  features  transfigured  with  pleasure,  and  her  whole 
soul  enraptured  with  the  swaying  motions  of  the 
dance,  no  matter  who  her  partner. 

"Are  you  jealous,  Sali?"  she  asked  smilingly,  when 
the  musicians  took  a  longer  rest. 

"Not  the  least,"  he  replied. 

"Then  why  are  you  so  angry  when  I'm  dancing 
with  somebody  else?"  she  wanted  to  know. 

"I  am  not  angry  because  of  that,"  he  said,  "but 
only  because  I  am  forced  to  dance  with  another  person 
but  you.  I  cannot  feel  pleasant  towards  another 
girl.  In  fact,  I  feel  just  as  though  I  had  a  block  of 
wood  in  my  arms  if  it  is  anybody  but  you.  And 
you?    How  do  you  feel  about  that?" 

"Oh,  I  feel  as  though  I  were  in  heaven  so  long  as 
I  merely  can  dance  and  know  that  you  are  present," 
replied  Vreni.  "But  I  believe  I  should  at  once  fall 
down  dead  if  you  went  and  left  me  here  by  myself." 

They  had  gone  down  from  the  dance  hall  and  were 
now  standing  in  the  grounds  before  the  house.  Vreni 
put  both  her  arms  around  his  neck,  pressed  her  slender 
trembling  body  against  him,  and    put    her    burning 


Jr 


312  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

cheek,  wet  from  hot  tears,  to  his,  sobbing  out:  "We 
cannot  marry,  and  yet  I  cannot  leave  you,  not  for  a 
moment,  not  for  a  minute." 

Sali  embraced  the  girl,  pressed  her  ardently  against 
his  heart,  and  covered  her  with  kisses.  His  confused 
thoughts  were  struggling  for  some  way  out  of  the 
labyrinth  that  encompassed  them  both,  but  he  saw 
none.  Even  if  the  blot  of  his  family  misery  and  his 
neglected  education  were  not  weighing  against  him, 
his  extreme  youth  and  his  ardent  passion  would  have 
prevented  a  long  period  of  patience  and  self-denial, 
and  then  there  would  still  have  been  his  misfortune 
in  having  injured  Vreni's  father  for  life.  The  con- 
sciousness that  happiness  for  himself  and  her  was, 
after  all,  to  be  found  only  in  a  union  honest,  blameless 
and  approved  by  the  whole  world,  was  just  as  much 
alive  in  him  as  in  Vreni.  In  her  case  as  in  his,  two 
beings  ostracized  by  all,  these  reflections  were  like  the 
last  flaring  up  of  their  lost  family  honor,  an  honor  that 
had  been  blazing  for  centuries  in  their  respectable 
houses  like  a  hving  flame,  and  which  their  fathers  had 
involuntarily  extinguished  and  destroyed  by  a  mis- 
deed which  at  the  time  had  been  committed  more  in 
thoughtlessness  than  with  malice  aforethought.  For 
when  they,  in  the  attempt  to  enlarge  their  holdings 
by  a  piece  of  dishonesty  that  seemed  at  the  time  wholly 
without  risk  and  not  likely  to  entail  serious  conse- 
quences, had  been  guilty  of  a  wrong  to  a  person  that 
had  been  universally  given  up  as  lost,  they  had  done 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    313 

something  which  many  of  their  otherwise  correct 
neighbors  would,  under  the  same  circumstances, 
likewise  have  done. 

Such  wrongs  as  that  are  indeed  perpetrated  every 
day  in  the  year,  on  a  large  or  a  small  scale.  But  once 
in  a  while  Fate  furnishes  an  example  of  how  two  such 
transgressors  against  the  honor  of  their  houses  and 
against  the  property  of  another  may  oppose  each 
other,  and  then  these  will  unfailingly  fight  to  the  death 
and  devour  one  the  other  like  two  savage  beasts. 
For  those  who  furtively  or  forcibly  increase  their 
estate  may  commit  such  fateful  blunders  not  only 
when  they  are  seated  on  thrones  and  then  apply  a 
high-sounding  name  to  their  lust  and  their  misdeed, 
but  the  same  in  substance  is  often  done  as  well  in 
the  humblest  hut,  and  both  categories  of  sinners  fre- 
quently accomplish  the  very  reverse  of  what  they 
aimed  at,  and  their  shield  of  honor  then  becomes 
overnight  a  tablet  of  shame.  But  Sali  and  Vreni 
had  both  of  them,  when  still  children,  seen  and  cher- 
ished the  honor  of  their  families,  and  well  remembered 
how  well  they  themselves  were  taken  care  of  and  how 
respected  and  highly  considered  their  fathers  had 
been  in  those  days. 

Later  they  had  been  separated  for  long  years,  and 
when  they  met  again  they  saw  in  each  other  also  the 
lost  honor  and  luck  of  their  houses,  and  that  instinctive 
feeling  had  helped  to  make  them  cling  to  each  other 
all  the  more  tenaciously.    They  longed  indeed,  both 


314  SELDWYLA   FOLKS 

of  them,  for  happiness  and  joy,  but  only  if  it  might 
be  done  legitimately  and  in  the  sight  of  all;  yet  at 
the  same  time  their  ardent  affection  for  each  other 
could  not  be  suppressed  and  their  senses,  their  bound- 
ing blood,  called  loudly  for  the  consummation  of  their 
desires. 

"Now  it  is  night,"  said  Vreni  in  a  low  tone  of  voice, 
"and  we  will  have  to  part." 

"What,  I  am  to  go  home  now  and  leave  you  alone?" 
retorted  Sali.     "No,  that  can  never  be." 

"But  what  then?"  said  Vreni,  plaintively.  "To- 
morrow morning  by  daylight  things  will  look  no 
better." 

"Let  me  give  you  a  piece  of  advice,"  a  shrill  voice 
suddenly  was  heard  behind  them.  It  was  the  black 
fiddler,  who  now  came  up  to  them.  "You  foolish 
young  things!  There  you  are  now,  and  you  know  not 
what  to  do  with  yourselves,  although  you  are  fond  of 
each  other.  Yet  nothing  easier  than  that.  I  advise 
you  to  delay  no  more.  Let  one  take  the  other,  just  as 
you  are.  Come  along  with  me  and  my  good  friends 
here,  right  into  the  mountains,  for  there  you  need  no 
priest,  no  money,  no  documents,  no  honor,  no  dowry, 
no  bed  and  no  wedding  —  nothing  but  your  mutual 
good  will.  Don't  get  frightened.  Things  are  not  at 
all  so  bad  with  us.  Pure  air  and  enough  to  eat,  pro- 
vided one  is  not  afraid  to  work.  The  green  woods  are 
our  home,  and  there  we  love  and  keep  house  just  as 
we  wish.     During  the  winter  we  He  snug  in  some  warm. 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE   315 

cosy  den  of  our  own  contriving,  or  else  we  creep  into 
the  warm  hay  of  the  peasants.  Therefore,  lose  no 
time.  Keep  your  wedding  right  now  and  here,  and 
then  come  along  with  us,  and  you  are  rid  of  all  your 
cares,  and  may  belong  to  each  other  forever  and 
aye,  or  at  least  as  long  as  you  want  to.  For  have  no 
fear  —  you'll  grow  old  with  us;  our  style  of  life  pro- 
cures good  strong  health,  you  may  well  believe  me. 
And  don't  think,  you  silly  young  folk,  that  I  am  bearing 
you  a  grudge  because  of  what  your  fathers  have  done  to 
me.  No  indeed.  Of  course,  it  gives  me  pleasure  to 
see  you  arrived  there  where  you  now  are.  But  with 
that  I  rest  content,  and  I  promise  you  to  help  and  aid 
you  in  all  sorts  of  ways  if  you  will  only  be  guided  by 
me. 

He  said  all  this  in  a  sincere  and  well-meaning  tone. 
''Well,  think  it  over,  if  you  wish,  for  a  spell,"  he  en- 
couraged them  still  further,  ''but  follow  my  counsel 
if  you  are  wise.  Let  the  world  go,  and  belong  to  each 
other  and  ask  nobody's  consent.  Think  of  the  gay 
bridal  bed  in  the  deep  forest  glade,  and  of  the  com- 
fortable hay  barn  in  winter."  And  saying  which  he 
disappeared  again  in  the  house. 

But  Vreni  was  trembling  like  aspen  in  Sali's  arms, 
and  he  asked  her:  "What  do  you  think  of  all  that? 
To  me  it  seems  indeed  it  would  be  best  to  let  the 
whole  world  go  hang,  and  to  love  each  other  without 
hindrance  and  fear." 

But  Sali  said  this  more  jokingly  than  in  earnest. 


3i6  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

Vreni,  on  the  other  hand,  took  it  all  seriously,  kissed 
him  and  replied:  "No,  I  should  not  like  that.  These 
people  do  not  act  according  to  my  notions.  That 
young  man  with  the  French  horn,  for  instance,  and 
the  girl  in  the  silk  skirt  also  belong  together  in  that 
way,  and  are  said  to  have  been  very  much  in  love. 
But  last  week,  it  seems,  she  has  been,  for  the  first 
time,  unfaithful  to  her  lover,  and  he  grieves  greatly 
on  that  account,  and  he  is  angry  at  her  and  at  the 
others,  but  they  merely  ridicule  him.  And  she  is 
imposing  a  kind  of  self-inflicted  and  ludicrous  penance 
on  herself  by  dancing  all  alone,  without  any  partner, 
and  without  speaking  to  anyone,  but  that,  too,  is  only 
making  a  fool  of  him.  However,  one  may  see  that 
the  poor  musician  is  going  to  make  up  with  her  this 
very  night.  But  I  must  say,  I  should  not  like  to  be 
with  a  company  where  such  doings  are  common,  for 
I  never  could  be  unfaithful  to  you,  although  I  would 
not  mind  undergoing  all  else  for  the  sake  of  possessing 
you.'*  '    , 

For  all  that,  poor  Vreni,  being  held  in  Sali's  arms, 
became  more  and  more  feverish,  for  ever  since  noon 
when  that  hostess  at  the  inn  had  mistaken  her  for  a 
bride,  and  she  herself  had  not  contradicted,  this 
alluring  prospect  had  been  burning  in  her  veins,  and 
the  less  hopeful  things  seemed  to  turn  for  a  realization 
of  this  idea,  the  more  relentlessly  her  pulses  were 
hammering  with  expectation  and  desire.  And  Sali 
was    experiencing    similar    hallucinations,    since    the 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE  317 

fiddler's  enticing  remarks,  while  he  meant  not  to 
listen  to  them,  had  also  been  fuel  to  his  passion.  So 
he  said  in  embarrassment  to  Vreni:  "Let  us  go  inside 
for  a  spell.  At  least  we  must  eat  and  drink  some- 
thing." 

They  were  greeted  in  entering  the  guest  room  where 
nobody  had  remained  but  the  fiddler's  friends,  the 
vagrants,  which  latter  were  seated  about  a  poor  meal 
at  table,  by  a  merry  chorus:  "There  comes  our  bridal 
pair!"  "Yes,"  added  the  fiddler,  "now  be  friendly 
and  comfortable,  and  we  will  see  you  married." 

Urged  to  join  the  company  the  two  young  lovers 
did  so  rather  shamefacedly.  But  after  a  moment  they 
began  to  brighten,  and  were  glad  to  be  at  least  rid  for 
the  moment  of  the  darker  problem  that  was  yet  to  be 
solved.  Sali  ordered  wine  and  some  choicer  dishes, 
and  soon  general  merriment  spread  among  them  all. 
The  heretofore  implacable  lover  had  become  recon- 
ciled to  his  unfaithful  one,  and  the  couple  now  fondled 
and  caressed  each  other  in  reestablished  ecstasy, 
while  the  giddy  other  pair  ceaselessly  yodled,  sang 
and  guzzled,  but  they  also  did  not  forget  to  give 
plain  evidences  of  their  amatory  disposition.  The 
fiddler  and  the  hunchback  accompanied  all  this  with 
a  great  deal  of  cheerful  noise.  Sali  and  Vreni  kept 
very  close  to  each  other,  tightly  holding  hands,  and 
all  at  once  the  fiddler  bade  all  the  company  be  quiet, 
and  a  jocular  ceremony  was  performed  signifying 
the  union  of  the  two  young  people.    They  had  to 


3i8  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

clasp  hands,  and  the  whole  audience  rose  and,  one  by 
one,  stepped  up  to  congratulate  them  and  to  bid 
them  welcome  within  their  fraternity.  They  placidly 
submitted  to  it  all,  but  said  never  a  word,  and  regarded 
the  whole  as  a  jest,  while  all  the  while  a  shudder  of 
voluptuous  feeling  ran  through  them. 

The  merry  company  now  became  louder  and  more 
excited,  the  fiery  wine  spurring  them  on,  until  at  last 
the  black  fiddler  urged  departure. 

"We  have  a  long  way  before  us,"  he  cried,  "and  it 
is  past  midnight.  Up,  all  of  you!  Let  us  solemnly 
escort  the  young  bridal  couple,  and  I  myself  will  open 
the  procession.  You  will  hear  me  fiddling  as  never 
before." 

Since  Sali  and  Vreni  felt  perfectly  dazed,  and 
scarcely  knew  what  they  were  doing  in  this  hurly-burly 
around  them,  they  did  not  protest  when  they  were 
made  to  head  the  file,  the  other  two  couples  following, 
and  the  hunchback,  with  his  huge  bass  viol  on  his 
shoulder,  being  at  its  tail  end.  The  black  fiddler, 
though,  strode  in  advance,  playing  like  a  man  pos- 
sessed, skipping  down  the  steep  hill  path  like  a 
chamois,  and  the  others  laughed,  singing  in  chorus, 
and  jumping  from  rock  to  rock.  Thus  this  nocturnal 
procession  hastened  on  and  on,  through  the  quiet 
fields  and  at  last  through  the  home  village  of  Sali 
and  Vreni,  now  sunk  in  deep  slumber. 

When  they  two  came  through  the  still  lanes  and  past 
their    abandoned    homes,    a    painfully    savage    mood 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE     319 

seized  them,  and  they  danced  and  whirled  along  with 
the  others  behind  the  fiddler,  kissed,  laughed  and 
wept.  They  also  danced  up  the  hill  with  the  three 
fields  that  had  tempted  their  fathers  to  their  ruin, 
the  fiddler  all  the  time  leading,  and  on  its  crest  the 
dusky  fiddler  fell  into  a  frenzy  of  fantastic  melody, 
and  his  train  of  followers  jumped  about  like  veritable 
demons.  Even  the  poor  hunchback  acted  like  de- 
mented. This  quiet  hill  resounded  with  the  infernal 
noise  of  the  whole  crew,  and  it  was  a  perfect  witches' 
Sabbath  for  a  short  while.  The  hunchback  breathed 
hard  and  in  a  muffled  voice  squeaked  with  delight, 
swinging  his  heavy  instrument  like  a  baton.  In  their 
paroxysm  none  saw  or  heard  the  next. 

But  Sali  seized  Vreni  and  thus  forced  her  to  halt. 
He  imprinted  a  kiss  on  her  mouth,  thus  stopping  her 
shouts  of  joy.  At  last  she  gathered  his  meaning,  and 
ceased  struggling.  They  stood  there,  right  on  the 
■Ar  spot  where  they  first  had  encountered  the  black  fiddler, 
listening  to  the  wild  music  and  to  the  singing  and 
shrieking  of  the  demoniac  cortege,  as  the  sounds 
gradually  swept  onwards  down  the  hill  towards  the 
river  below.  Nobody  evidently  had  missed  them  in 
the  midst  of  the  whole  spook.  The  shrill  tones  of  the 
fiddle,  the  laughter  of  the  girls,  and  the  yodels  of  the 
men  resounded  for  another  spell  through  the  night, 
fainter  and  fainter,  until  at  last  the  noise  died  away 
down  by  the  shores  of  the  river. 

"We  have  escaped    those,''   now  said  Sali,   "but 


320  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

how  are  we  going  to  escape  from  ourselves?  How 
shall  we  separate,  and  how  keep  apart?'' 

Vreni  was  not  able  to  answer  him.  Breathing  hard 
she  lay  on  his  breast. 

"Had  I  not  better  take  you  back  to  the  village,  and 
wake  some  family  in  order  to  make  them  take  you  in 
for  the  night?  To-morrow  you  can  leave  and  look 
for  some  work.    You'll  be  able  to  get  along  anywhere." 

"But  without  you?  Get  along  without  you?" 
said  the  girl. 

"You  must  forget  me." 

"Never,"  she  murmured  sadly.  "Never  in  my 
life."  And  she  added,  glancing  sternly  at  him:  "Could 
you  do  that?" 

"That  is  not  the  point,  dear  heart,"  answered  Sali, 
slow  and  distinct.  He  caressed  her  feverish  cheeks, 
while  she  kept  pressing  herself  against  his  bosom. 
"Let  us  only  consider  your  own  case.  You,  Vreni, 
are  still  so  very  young,  and  quite  likely  you  will  fare 
well  enough  after  a  short  while." 

"And  you  also  —  you  ancient  man,"  she  said,  smil- 
ing wistfully. 

"Come!"  now  said  Sali,  and  dragged  her  along. 
But  they  only  went  on  a  few  steps,  and  then  they 
halted  once  more,  the  better  to  embrace  and  kiss. 
The  deep  quiet  of  the  world  ran  like  music  through 
their  souls,  and  the  only  sound  to  be  heard  around 
them  was  the  gentle  rush  and  swish  of  the  waves  as 
they  slowly  went  on  further  down  the  valley  below. 


ROMEO  AND  JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    321 

"How  beautiful  it  is  around  here!  Listen!  It 
seems  to  me  there  is  somebody  far  away  singing  in 
a  low  voice.'' 

"No,  sweetheart;  it  is  only  the  water  softly  flowing." 

"And  yet  it  seems  there  is  some  music  —  way  out 
there,  everywhere." 

"I  think  it  is  our  own  blood  coursing  that  is  deceiv- 
ing our  ears." 

But  though  they  hearkened  again  and  again,  the 
solemn  stillness  remained  unbroken.  The  magic  effect 
of  the  light  of  a  resplendent  full  moon  was  visible  in 
the  whole  landscape,  as  the  autumnal  veil  of  fog  that 
rose  in  semi-transparent  layers  from  the  river  shore 
mingled  with  the  silvery  sheen,  waving  in  grayish  or 
bluish  bands. 

Suddenly  Vreni  recalled  something,  and  said:  "Here, 
I  have  bought  you  something  to  remember  me  by." 

And  she  gave  him  the  plain  little  ring,  and  placed 
it  on  his  finger.  Sali,  too,  found  the  little  ring  he  had 
meant  for  her,  and  while  he  put  it  on  her  hand,  he  said: 
"Thus  we  have  had  the  same  thought,  you  and  I." 

Vreni  held  up  her  hand  into  the  silvery  light  of  the 
moon  and  examined  the  little  token  curiously. 

"Oh,  what  a  fine  ring,"  she  then  said,  laughing. 
"Now  we  are  both  betrothed  and  wedded.  You  are 
my  husband,  and  I'm  your  wife.  Let  us  imagine  so, 
just  long  enough  until  that  small  cloud  has  passed  the 
moon,  or  else  until  we  have  counted  twelve.  You 
must  kiss  me  twelve  times." 


322  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

Sali  was  surely  fully  as  much  in  love  as  was  Vreni, 
but  the  marriage  problem  was,  after  all,  not  of  such 
intense  interest  to  him,  not  such  a  question  of  Either 
—  Or,  of  an  immediate  To  Be  or  Not  To  Be,  as  it  was 
in  the  case  of  the  girl.  For  Vreni  could  feel  just  then 
only  that  one  problem,  saw  in  it  with  passionate  energy 
life  or  death  itself.  But  now  at  last  he  began  to  see 
clearly  into  the  very  soul  of  his  companion,  and  the 
feminine  desire  in  her  became  instantly  with  him  a 
wild  and  ardent  longing,  and  his  senses  reeled  under 
its  potency.  And  while  he  had  previously  caressed 
and  embraced  her  with  the  strength  and  fervor  of 
a  devoted  lover,  he  did  so  now  with  an  incomparably 
greater  abandonment  to  his  passion.  He  held  Vreni 
tightly  to  his  beating  heart,  and  fairly  overwhelmed 
her  with  endearments.  In  spite  of  her  own  love 
fever,  the  girl  with  true  feminine  instinct  at  once  be- 
came aware  of  this  change,  and  she  began  to  tremble 
as  with  fear  of  the  unknown.  But  this  feeling  passed 
almost  in  a  moment,  and  before  even  the  cloud  had 
flitted  over  the  moon^s  face  her  whole  being  was  seized 
by  the  whirlwind  of  his  ardor,  and  engulfed  in  its 
depths.  While  both  struggled  with  and  at  the  same 
time  fondled  the  other,  their  beringed  hands  met  and 
seized  the  other  as  though  at  that  supreme  moment 
their  union  was  consummated  without  the  consent  of 
their  will  power.  Sali's  heart  knocked  against  its 
prison  door  like  a  living  being;  anon  it  stood  still, 
and  he  breathed  with  difficulty  and  said  slow  and  in 


ROMEO  AND   JULIET   OF  THE  VILLAGE    323 

a  whisper:  "There  is  one  thing,  only  one  thing,  we 
can  do,  Vreni;  we  keep  our  wedding  this  hour,  and  then 
we  leave  this  world  forever  —  there  below  is  the 
deep  water  —  there  is  everlasting  peace  and  ful- 
filment of  all  our  hopes  —  there  nobody  will  divorce 
us  again  —  and  we  have  had  our  dearest  wish  —  have 
lived  and  died  together  —  whether  for  long,  whether 
for  short  —  we  need  not  care  —  we  are  rid  of  all 
care — " 

And  Vreni  instantly  responded.  "Yes,  Sali  —  what 
you  say  I  also  have  thought  to  myself  —  not  once  but 
constantly  these  days  —  I  have  dreamed  of  it  with 
my  whole  soul  —  we  can  die  together,  and  then  all 
this  torment  is  over  —  Swear  to  me,  Sali,  that  you 
will  do  it  with  me!'' 

"Yes,  dearest,  it  is  as  good  as  done  —  nobody  shall 
take  you  from  me  now  but  Death  alone!''  Thus 
the  young  man  in  his  exaltation.  But  Vreni's  breath 
came  quick  and  as  if  freed  from  an  intolerable  burden. 
Tears  of  sweetest  joy  came  to  her  eyes,  and  she  rose 
with  spontaneous  alacrity  and,  light  as  a  bird,  flew 
down  towards  the  river  side.  Sali  followed  her,  think- 
ing for  a  moment  she  wanted  to  escape  him,  while 
she  fancied  he  would  wish  to  prevent  her.  Thus 
they  both  sprang  down  the  steep  path,  and  Vreni 
laughed  happily  like  a  child  that  will  not  allow  her 
playmate  to  catch  her. 

"Are  you  sorry  for  it  already?"  Thus  they  both 
apostrophized  the  other,  as  they  in  a  twinkling  had 


324  SELDWYLA  FOLKS 

reached  the  river  shore  and  seized  hold  of  each  other. 
And  both  answered:  "No,  indeed,  how  can  you 
think  so?" 

And  carefree  they  now  walked  briskly  along  the 
river  bank,  and  they  outdistanced  the  hastening  waves, 
for  thus  keenly  they  sought  a  spot  where  they  could 
stay  for  a  while.  For  in  the  trance  of  their  enthusiasm 
they  knew  of  nothing  but  the  bliss  awaiting  them  in 
the  full  possession  of  each  other.  The  whole  worth 
and  meaning  of  their  lives  just  then  condensed  itself 
into  that  one  supreme  desire.  What  was  to  follow  it, 
death,  eternal  oblivion,  was  to  them  a  mere  nothing, 
a  puff  of  air,  and  they  thought  less  of  it  than  does  the 
spendthrift  think  of  the  morrow  when  wasting  his 
last  substance. 

"My  flowers  shall  precede  me,"  cried  Vreni,  "only 
look!  They  are  quite  withered  and  dusty!"  And 
she  plucked  them  from  her  bosom,  cast  them  into  the 
water,  and  sang  aloud:  "But  sweeter  far  than  almonds 
is  my  love  for  thee!" 

"Stop!"  called  out  Sali.  "Here  is  our  bridal 
chamber!" 

They  had  reached  a  road  for  vehicles  which  led  from 
the  village  to  the  river,  and  here  there  was  a  landing, 
and  a  big  boat,  laden  high  with  hay,  was  tied  to  an 
iron  ring  in  the  bank.  In  a  reckless  mood  Sali  in- 
stantly set  to  freeing  the  ship  from  the  strong  ropes 
that  held  it  to  the  landing.  But  Vreni  grasped  his 
arm,  and  she  shouted  laughing:  "What  are  you  about? 


ROMEO  AND   JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    325 

Are  we  to  wind  up  by  stealing  from  the  peasants  their 
haycock?" 

"That  is  to  be  the  dowry  they  give  us,"  replied 
Sali  with  humor.  "See!  A  swimming  bedstead  and 
a  couch  softer  than  any  royal  couple  ever  had.  Be- 
sides, they  will  recover  their  property  unharmed 
somewhere  near  the  goal  whither  it  was  to  travel 
anyway,  and  they  will  hardly  trouble  their  hard  heads 
with  the  question  how  it  got  there.  Do  you  notice, 
dear,  how  the  boat  is  swaying  and  rocking?  It  is 
impatient  to  start  on  the  journey." 

The  ship  lay  a  few  paces  off  the  shore  in  deeper 
water.  Sali  lifted  Vreni  in  his  arms  high  up,  and 
began  to  wade  through  the  water  towards  the  boat. 
But  she  caressed  him  so  fervently  and  wriggled  like 
a  fish  on  the  angle,  that  Sali  was  losing  his  footing 
in  the  rather  strong  current.  She  strained  her  hands 
and  arms  in  order  to  plunge  them  in  the  water,  crying: 
"I  also  want  to  try  the  cool  water.  Do  you  remember 
how  cold  and  moist  our  hands  were  when  we  first 
met?  That  time  we  had  been  catching  fish.  Now 
we  ourselves  will  be  fish,  and  two  big  and  handsome 
ones  to  boot." 

"Keep  still,  you  wriggling  darling,"  said  Sali, 
scarcely  able  to  stand  up  in  the  water,  with  his  sweet- 
heart tossing  in  his  arms  and  the  current  pulling  at 
him,  "or  it  will  drag  me  under!" 

But  now  he  lifted  his  pretty  burden  into  the  boat, 
and  scrambled  up  its  side  himself.     Then  he  hoisted 


326  SELDWYLA   FOLKS 

her  up  to  the  hay,  packed  in  orderly  fashion  in  the 
middle,  sweet-scented  and  downy  like  a  vast  pillow, 
and  next  he  swung  himself  up  to  her.  When  they 
both  were  thus  enthroned  on  their  bridal  bed  the  ship 
drifted  gently  into  the  middle  of  the  stream,  and  then, 
turning  slowly,  it  headed  sluggishly  in  an  easterly 
direction. 

The  river  flowed  through  dark  woods,  shadowing 
it;  it  flowed  through  the  fruitful  plain,  past  quiet 
villages  and  hamlets  and  single  homesteads;  there 
it  broadened  out  like  a  still  lake  and  the  ship  moved 
but  slightly  downwards,  and  here  it  turned  tall  rocks 
and  left  the  slumbering  landscape  quickly  behind. 
And  when  dawn  broke  there  was  in  sight  at  some 
distance  a  town  rising  with  its  age-worn  towers  and 
steeples  above  the  silver-gray  river.  The  setting 
moon,  red  as  gold,  cast  a  quivering  track  of  light 
upstream  towards  the  dim  outlines  of  the  ancient 
city,  and  into  this  luminous  bed  the  ship  finally  turned 
its  prow.  When  the  houses  of  the  town  at  last  ap- 
proached closely  two  pale  shapes,  locked  in  a  tight 
embrace,  glided  in  the  autumnal  frost  of  early  morn 
from  off  the  dark  mass  of  the  ship  into  the  silent 
waters. 

The  ship  itself  shortly  after  fetched  up  near  a  bridge, 
unharmed,  and  remained  there.  When  sometime 
later  the  two  bodies,  still  locked  in  each  others'  arms, 
were  found,  and  details  about  the  young  man  and  his 


ROMEO  AND   JULIET  OF  THE  VILLAGE    327 

sweetheart  were  learned,  one  might  have  read  in  the 
newspapers  that  these  two,  the  children  of  two  ruined 
and  impoverished  families  that  had  lived  in  bitter 
enmity,  had  sought  death  in  the  water  together  after 
dancing  with  great  animation  at  a  kermess.  This 
event  probably  was  connected  with  the  other  fact  that 
a  boat  laden  with  hay  had  landed  in  town  without 
anyone  on  board.  It  was  supposed  that  the  young 
couple  had  cut  loose  the  boat  somewhere  in  order  to 
hold  their  godforsaken  wedding  on  it.  "Once  again 
a  proof  of  the  spread  of  lawless  and  impious  passion 
among  the  lower  classes."  That  was  the  concluding 
paragraph  in  the  newspaper  report. 

THE   END 


'^ 


